memeorandum: Sen. Josh Hawley Is Cast as a GOP Leader After Trump. But Like Trump, He's a Faux-Populist. (Mehdi Hasan/The Intercept)

7:10 PM ET, April 29, 2020

Top Items:

Jeremy Diamond / CNN:

Trump erupts at campaign manager as reelection stress overflows — (CNN)As he huddled with advisers on Friday evening, President Donald Trump was still fuming over his sliding poll numbers and the onslaught of criticism he was facing for suggesting a day earlier that ingesting disinfectant might prove effective against coronavirus.

Discussion: Slate and Mediaite

Josh Dawsey / Washington Post:

Trump presented with grim internal polling showing him losing to Biden — President Trump's advisers presented him with the results of internal polling last week that showed him falling behind former vice president Joe Biden in key swing states in the presidential race …

Discussion: Mother Jones

New York Times:

Polls Had Trump Stewing, and Lashing Out at His Own Campaign — The president erupted recently at his campaign manager, Brad Parscale, after seeing polling data that showed Mr. Trump trailing Joe Biden in several states. — Frustrated by a faltering economy that is out of his control …

Washington Post:

Biden himself should address the Tara Reade allegations and release relevant records — TARA READE deserves to be heard, and voters deserve to hear her. They deserve to hear from Joe Biden, too. — The former vice president and probable Democratic presidential nominee has yet to speak publicly …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, Axios, Washington Examiner, The Hill, The Daily Caller, ABC News, Twitchy, Fox News and Breitbart

Kevin Drum / Mother Jones:

So, Tara Reade . . . For indispensable reporting on the coronavirus crisis and more, subscribe to Mother Jones' newsletters. — Did Joe Biden sexually assault Tara Reade in 1993, as she claims? I don't know. As is so often the case, there were no witnesses and no physical evidence, so it's literally her word against his.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Redstate, Vanity Fair, pjmedia.com, The Week, Power Line, HuffPost, The Daily Caller and The Root

New York Times:

Democratic Frustration Mounts as Biden Remains Silent on Sexual Assault Allegation — Activists and women's rights advocates have urged Mr. Biden to address a former aide's allegation that he sexually assaulted her in 1993. His lack of response has angered them.

Discussion: Politico, Redstate, Jacobin, Washington Free Beacon, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and New York Post

The Daily Beast:
Why Have Women's Groups Gone Dead Silent on Biden Sex-Assault Accusation?

Discussion: Associated Press, National Review, Politico, Fox News, Mediaite, HuffPost, Damian J. Penny, Breitbart, Vanity Fair, TheBlaze, Al Jazeera, IJR, Twitchy, Washington Post, Washington Monthly and The American Conservative

Berkeley Lovelace Jr / CNBC:

Gilead says early results of coronavirus drug trial show improvement with shorter remdesivir treatment — Gilead said preliminary results of a coronavirus drug trial showed at least 50% of patients treated with a five-day dosage of remdesivir improved. — Dr. Fauci's positive comments …

Discussion: Reuters, New York Times, Too Much Information, Breitbart, The Week and Observer

STAT:
Critical study of Gilead's Covid-19 drug shows patients are responding to treatment, NIH says

Discussion: The Lancet, Gilead Sciences, Inc., Bloomberg, LiveScience, Mediaite and The Week

New York Times:
Coronavirus Live Updates: F.D.A. Plans to Announce Emergency Use of New Drug After a Trial Showed Shortened Recovery

Discussion: Reuters, Gothamist, New York Post, Reason, Townhall, Gizmodo, Forbes, The Week and Sean Hannity

Erika Edwards / NBC News:
‘Clear-cut’ evidence coronavirus drug remdesivir works, Fauci says

Discussion: Associated Press, NPR and Roll Call

Liel Leibovitz / Tablet Magazine:

The Blood on de Blasio's Hands — He bungled his COVID-19 response, plunging the city into a charnel. Now he is blaming the Jews.

Discussion: Instapundit

New York Times:
De Blasio Breaks Up Rabbi's Funeral and Lashes Out Over Virus Distancing

Discussion: Mediaite, Jewish Insider, NBC News, Reason, The Yeshiva World, Tangle, Breitbart, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, abc7NY, Just The News and The Daily Caller

Batya Ungar-Sargon / The Forward:
De Blasio is stoking anti-Semitism. He's not alone.

Discussion: National Review, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, New York Post, Townhall and IJR

David Marcus / The Federalist:
Bill De Blasio Should Resign Over His Anti-Semitic Tweet

Discussion: Townhall, BuzzFeed News and HuffPost

CNN:

GOP senator gives activists grim 2020 assessment amid fears over holding Senate — (CNN)Sen. David Perdue, a Georgia Republican up for reelection and a close Trump confidant, issued a blunt warning to GOP activists during an off-the-record conference call this week: Democrats are in position to turn his state blue and take the Senate.

Rick Hasen / electionlawblog.org: Breaking: In Major Decision Rejecting Kris Kobach's Claims of Massive Voter Fraud, Tenth Circuit …

New York Times:

U.S. Coronavirus Death Toll Is Far Higher Than Reported, C.D.C. Data Suggests — Total deaths in seven states that have been hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic are nearly 50 percent higher than normal for the five weeks from March 8 through April 11, according to new death statistics …

Discussion: The Guardian, Block Club Chicago, Reason, GovExec.com, Daily Kos, Outside the Beltway, The Week, Mother Jones and WLNS-TV

New York Times:

Trump Appointees Manipulated Agency's Payday Lending Research, Ex-Staffer Claims — A former economist at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau accused Trump appointees of steering the bureau's reversal on payday lending rules to gut a key provision. — Last summer, on his final …

Discussion: Raw Story

Kathleen McGrory / Tampa Bay Times:

Florida medical examiners were releasing coronavirus death data. The state made them stop. — When the medical examiners' list was available, it showed more deaths than the state's count. — State officials have stopped releasing the list of coronavirus deaths being compiled …

Discussion: CNN, Raw Story, The Week, The Hill, Daily Kos and The Intellectualist

Emma Tucker / The Daily Beast:

Jared Kushner Calls Coronavirus Response ‘a Great Success Story’ as Death Toll Nears 60,000 — UM, WHAT?! — President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, who has been largely absent amid the coronavirus crisis in recent weeks, said on Wednesday that “this is a great success story” …

Discussion: HuffPost, IJR and One America News Network

Brett Samuels / The Hill:
Kushner predicts much of the country will be ‘back to normal’ in June

Discussion: Fox News, POLITICUSUSA and The Intellectualist

Martin Crutsinger / Associated Press:

Economists agree: No quick rebound from recession is likely — WASHINGTON (AP) — Devastated by the coronavirus, the U.S. economy is sinking. And the plunge is accelerating. — Now, as some businesses in a few states start to trickle back to work, hopes are beginning to arise that the economy …

Discussion: CNBC, The Week and Politico

Matthew Yglesias / Vox:
The economy shrunk at the fastest pace since the Great Recession

Discussion: U.S. Bureau …, Mother Jones and POLITICUSUSA

Bloomberg:

Trump's ‘Operation Warp Speed’ Aims to Rush Coronavirus Vaccine — Secret project has goal of 100 million doses by year's end — Fauci has said vaccine will take 12 to 18 months to develop — The Trump administration is quietly organizing a Manhattan Project-style effort …

Discussion: The Hill, Big League Politics, TheBlaze, The Daily Caller and The Week

Amanda Mull / The Atlantic:

Georgia's Experiment in Human Sacrifice — Editor's Note: The Atlantic is making vital coverage of the coronavirus available to all readers. Find the collection here. — At first, Derek Canavaggio thought he would be able to ride out the coronavirus pandemic at home until things were safe.

Discussion: The Daily Beast

BuzzFeed News:

After One Tweet To President Trump, This Man Got $69 Million From New York For Ventilators — We may all be at home, but that hasn't stopped our reporters from breaking exclusive stories like this one. To help keep this news free, become a member and sign up for our newsletter, Outbreak Today.

Tim Miller / The Bulwark:

The Stories Dan Crenshaw Tells Himself — The pathos of Trump's most effective defender. — In a new book out this month, a Republican member of Congress offers one of the most brutal and surgical eviscerations of President Trump's leadership style that has been put to print.

Discussion: The Bulwark Podcast and Twitchy

CNN:

Meat plant workers to Trump: Employees aren't going to show up — New York (CNN Business)Meat-processing plant workers are concerned about President Donald Trump's executive order that compels plants to remain open during the coronavirus pandemic. Meat plant employees are among America's …

Discussion: ABC News, Washington Post, Raw Story, The United Food & … and The American Independent

Mark Joseph Stern / Slate:

Seven States Restrict Mail-In Voting on the Basis of Age. That's Unconstitutional. — The 26th Amendment takes on newfound importance in the pandemic. … The 26th Amendment is often viewed as a relic of the Vietnam War era, when 18-year-olds protested the fact that they were old enough to be drafted but not to cast a ballot.

The Daily Beast:

Trump Encouraged Sean Hannity to Go After the New York Times — Trump thought it was a good idea for Hannity to explore legal action against the news outlet for its critical coverage of how Fox News handled the coronavirus crisis. — Over the past month, as Fox News personality Sean Hannity seethed …

Discussion: Mediaite, Daily Kos, The Hill, The Intellectualist and Redstate

W.J. Hennigan / TIME:

Trump Says U.S. Will Run 5 Million Daily Virus Tests ‘Very Soon.’ His Testing Chief Says That's Impossible — President Donald Trump declared Tuesday that the U.S. will be able to carry out five million coronavirus tests per day, but the top official overseeing testing strategy told TIME earlier …

Discussion: New York Magazine, Mother Jones, Vanity Fair, WLNS-TV, Talking Points Memo, CNBC, Washington Post, Raw Story, Daily Kos, Vox, The American Independent and Bloomberg

New York Times:

Trump Administration Signals Support for Allies' Fight Against Virus Orders — Conservative groups making a legal assault against state and local coronavirus restrictions are backed by the Justice Department's willingness to “take action.” — WASHINGTON — A network of conservative leaders …

Discussion: Raw Story, NB Blog, The National Interest, TheBlaze, New York Post and Just The News

Daniel Lippman / Politico:

Bolton book release pushed back again, to late June — The publication of former Trump national security adviser John Bolton's tell-all book has been pushed back again to at least late June, according to a notice from Amazon.com, amid an extensive prepublication review by the National Security Council.

Discussion: Political Wire

Isabel Holloway / emersonpolling.com:

April National Poll: Trump Down But Not Out, as Enthusiasm and Expectation Favor the President — A new Emerson College Polling national poll finds President Trump's approval rating at 41% approval, with 50% disapproval. This indicates a 5 point swing in both directions since March …

Vaughn Hillyard / NBC News:

Police say death of Arizona man is not being investigated as a homicide — A Mesa Police spokesman refuted reports circulating in conservative media outlets, calling them “inaccurate.” — PHOENIX — Police said Wednesday that the death of an Arizona man who consumed a form of chloroquine phosphate …

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon and The Gateway Pundit

Christina Maxouris / CNN:

US could be in for ‘a bad fall and a bad winter’ if it's unprepared for a second wave of coronavirus, Fauci warns — (CNN)A second round of the coronavirus is “inevitable,” the nation's top infectious disease doctor says, but just how bad it is will depend on the progress the US makes in the coming months.

Discussion: Observer, POLITICUSUSA, The Hill, New York Post and MSNBC

Inquirer News:

Tests in recovered patients in S. Korea found false positives, not reinfections, experts say — SEOUL — South Korea's infectious disease experts said Thursday that dead virus fragments were the likely cause of over 260 people here testing positive again for the novel coronavirus days and even weeks after marking full recoveries.

Kelly McBride / NPR:

Interview With A Coffee Shop Owner Upset Liberals: Here's What Really Happened — Last week, I was listening to Morning Edition when I heard Scott Horsley's story exploring the benefits and drawbacks of the federally enhanced unemployment benefits. Even before the Internet exploded, I had some questions.

more at Mediagazer »

James B. Stewart / New York Times:

The Victoria's Secret Contract That Anticipated a Pandemic — A buyout firm is trying to back out of its deal for Victoria's Secret, citing the coronavirus. The contract's wording will make that tricky. — It's no wonder the buyout firm Sycamore Partners is trying to back out of its $525 million deal …

Dave Gilson / Mother Jones:

Trump's 100 Days of Deadly Coronavirus Denial — On January 22, two days after the first case of COVID-19 in the United States was confirmed, President Donald Trump was asked if his administration was worried about an impending pandemic. “No, we're not at all,” he replied. “And we have it totally under control.