- 1,176 deaths and 33,201 new coronavirus cases reported yesterday
- Woodward book says Trump knew Covid was deadly but wanted to ‘play it down’
- Whistleblower claims Trump loyalists interfered to downplay Russia election threat
- Winds fuel wildfires in California as blazes rage across US west
- Pence slated to speak at fundraiser hosted by QAnon supporters
- Sign up for our First Thing newsletter
11.14am BST
Brian Stelter at CNN has a pretty good summing up of where yesterday’s revelations leave us, and some of the questions left unanswered. In the Reliable Sources email today, Stelter writes:
Trump’s statements to Woodward force us, well, force some of us at least, to wonder: What if? What if Trump had risen to the occasion? What if he had been more forthright with the public about what he was hearing in private? What if the federal government’s early failures regarding testing hadn’t hobbled the initial response to the virus? What if the feds had closed the front door of the house, and all the side doors, in the form of earlier European travel bans, instead of just partially closing the back door from China?
I could go on and on but it’s mightily depressing. What if the president had addressed the nation once, twice, three times and introduced concepts like “social distancing” and “flattening the curve” in February? What if, instead of accusing Democrats of coming up with a “new hoax,” he had partnered with them? What if he had spent less time talking to Woodward? What if someone else had been president?
11.01am BST
Good morning. At any other time, the revelation that the US president had deliberately downplayed the threat of a viral pandemic that he knew to be deadly would be the only story in town.
These aren’t normal times though, and that’s just going to be one of the threads in our coverage of US politics today, as the death toll from coronavirus continues to rise, the west coast is suffering catastrophic fires, and there’s 54 days to the election…
Continue reading…1,176 deaths and 33,201 new coronavirus cases reported yesterdayWoodward book says Trump knew Covid was deadly but wanted to ‘play it down’Whistleblower claims Trump loyalists interfered to downplay Russia election threatWinds fuel wildfires in California as blazes rage across US westPence slated to speak at fundraiser hosted by QAnon supportersSign up for our First Thing newsletter 11.14am BSTBrian Stelter at CNN has a pretty good summing up of where yesterday’s revelations leave us, and some of the questions left unanswered. In the Reliable Sources email today, Stelter writes:Trump’s statements to Woodward force us, well, force some of us at least, to wonder: What if? What if Trump had risen to the occasion? What if he had been more forthright with the public about what he was hearing in private? What if the federal government’s early failures regarding testing hadn’t hobbled the initial response to the virus? What if the feds had closed the front door of the house, and all the side doors, in the form of earlier European travel bans, instead of just partially closing the back door from China?I could go on and on but it’s mightily depressing. What if the president had addressed the nation once, twice, three times and introduced concepts like “social distancing” and “flattening the curve” in February? What if, instead of accusing Democrats of coming up with a “new hoax,” he had partnered with them? What if he had spent less time talking to Woodward? What if someone else had been president? 11.01am BSTGood morning. At any other time, the revelation that the US president had deliberately downplayed the threat of a viral pandemic that he knew to be deadly would be the only story in town.These aren’t normal times though, and that’s just going to be one of the threads in our coverage of US politics today, as the death toll from coronavirus continues to rise, the west coast is suffering catastrophic fires, and there’s 54 days to the election… Continue reading…