Steve Bannon blasts China's response to coronavirus: 'They’ve got to be confronted'

Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon joined "Watters' World" on Saturday to discuss China's role in the coronavirus pandemic.

"We have to have the stomach for this fight, and I think we do. I think it’s very clear: This is a fight for freedom," Bannon said of the U.S. confronting China for its lack of transparency ahead of and during the pandemic. "Remember: The Chinese people are the innocent victims."


"This is about a totalitarian regime, every bit as brutal, every bit as cold-blooded, every bit as tough as the Nazis in the 1930s," Bannon said. "They’ve got to be confronted."

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https://www.foxnews.com/media/steve-bannon-china-coronavirus-response

With Kim Jong Un’s health uncertain, focus shifts to powerful sister Kim Yo Jong

North Korea’s male-dominated Kim dynasty may be about to hand over the keys to the Hermit Kingdom to a woman.

With speculation swirling over Kim Jong Un’s health, all eyes have turned to his sister and closest confidant, Kim Yo Jong, as his most likely successor.

Yo Jong may lack the bizarre, high-fade bouffants of the three generations of male rulers in her family, but she shares her brother’s secrecy and penchant for lashing out against political adversaries

Still, much about her remains a mystery.

Yo Jong’s age is not exactly clear, though she’s believed to be in her early 30s, a few years younger than Jong Un.

She’s kept a low profile, only last month releasing her first public statement, mocking South Korea as a “frightening dog barking” for opposing a live-fire military demonstration.

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https://www.foxnews.com/world/with-kim-jong-uns-health-uncertain-focus-shifts-to-powerful-sister-kim-yo-jong

BREAKING: Trump Uses Defense Production Act To Protect America’s Food Supply Chain

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday evening to protect America’s food supply chain from disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which originated in China.

“It is important that processors of beef, pork, and poultry (“meat and poultry”) in the food supply chain continue operating and fulfilling orders to ensure a continued supply of protein for Americans,” the order stated. “However, outbreaks of COVID-19 among workers at some processing facilities have led to the reduction in some of those facilities’ production capacity. In addition, recent actions in some States have led to the complete closure of some large processing facilities.”

The executive order highlighted how closing facilities in the national meat and poultry supply chain undermined critical infrastructure, noting that “any unnecessary closures can quickly have a large effect on the food supply chain.”

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CNN 'Larry King' episode featuring Biden accuser's mother disappears from Google Play catalog

The 1993 episode of CNN's "Larry King Live" featuring an anonymous caller who was later identified as the mother of Biden accuser Tara Reade was no longer listed in Google Play's catalog late Saturday.

Twitter user J.L. Hamilton shared a screenshot showing the Aug. 11, 1993, broadcast of "Larry King Live" was no longer listed in the season three catalog of the iconic CNN talk show. Mysteriously, though, the Aug. 10 broadcast, which is listed as "Episode 154" is followed by the Aug. 12 broadcast, which is listed as "Episode 155," suggesting that episode and the ones that follow could be incorrectly listed and off by a number.

Fox News later verified the Aug. 11 episode is not listed on the streaming service. It is unclear when it was removed from the catalog.

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https://www.foxnews.com/media/cnn-larry-king-episode-featuring-biden-accusers-mother-disappears-from-google-play-catalog

Coronavirus immunity not assured after infection, WHO says, imperiling ‘passport’ idea

There is “currently no evidence” that people who recover from coronavirus are protected from a second infection, the World Health Organization wrote Friday in a scientific briefing.

The statement came as Chile announced plans to distribute “immunity passports” for recovering patients to use at workplaces, airports and other locations – and as officials in the U.S. and France expressed interest in similar plans, NPR reported.

The WHO’s statement would seem to negate the validity of any such document.

“Some governments have suggested that the detection of antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, could serve as the basis for an 'immunity passport' or 'risk-free certificate' that would enable individuals to travel or to return to work assuming that they are protected against re-infection,” the WHO wrote. “There is currently no evidence that people who have recovered from COVID-19 and have antibodies are protected from a second infection.”

The information was sure to be troubling as the world continued grappling with the outbreak, which as of early Sunday had sickened more than 2.9 million people and killed more than 203,000 across the globe, according to Johns Hopkins University.

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https://www.foxnews.com/health/coronavirus-immunity-not-assured-after-infection-who-says-imperiling-passport-idea

Lindsey Graham Explains Why He'll Be "Shocked" If North Korea's Kim Isn't Dead

The well-known hawkish Senator Lindsey Graham took to Fox over the weekend to explain he'll be shocked if ongoing rumors and speculation about the death of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un don't turn out to be true.

Graham told Fox host Jeanine Pirro that international reports are so rampant at this point that Pyongyang would otherwise be forced to offer proof that he's alive. Instead there's been deafening silence.

“It’s a closed society. I haven’t heard anything directly, but I’ll be shocked if he’s not dead or in some incapacitated state because you don’t let rumors like this go forever or go unanswered in a closed society which is really a cult, not a country, called north Korea,” the senator said.

He concluded: “So I pretty well believe he is dead or incapacitated”.

He added that the people of North Korea “will get some relief” if Kim is indeed dead, and that it remains in such a case that President Trump “is willing to do business with North Korea in a win-win fashion”.

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Pelosi Pushes Vote-by-Mail: ‘Every Person Registered to Vote Should Receive a Ballot’

Friday on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said “much more than” the initial $400 million for a vote-by-mail initiative will be included in the next coronavirus stimulus bill to enable “every person registered to vote” to receive a ballot at home.

When asked about President Donald Trump not favoring bailout funding for the post office, Pelosi said, “The post office has over 90 percent favorability among the American people. They depend on the post office as a public institution. Seniors now are getting — they have always been getting their medicine by mail for a long time now and now even more urgently. People are buying things that are telemarketing and the rest, and they’re being delivered by the post office. So at this time, any time, it’s a bad idea. It’s what they’re about, privatization, privatization, privatization. Let someone else go make money off someone that should be a public service for the American people. We will have to have that fight. We tried to get funding for the post office in the CARES one bill. We had some money in a bipartisan way, but the president I understand personally rejected it.”

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John Podesta and George Soros Connected to Consortium Behind Russia Collusion Sham Now Pushing Democrat Coronavirus Investigation

Creepy John Podesta and George Soros are connected to a consortium behind the creators of the Steele dossier and the Senate report on Russia collusion – both totally bogus reports. Now they’re working on the upcoming investigation into the President’s actions with the coronavirus.

Daniel Jones, a former staffer for Democrat Dianne Feinstein, received awards for his efforts in the Democrat’s horrible CIA torture report where he was connected to Senate Intelligence Committee staffer James Wolfe. A woman from the New York Times, Ali Watson, almost received a Pulitzer for her reporting on this subject. Watson was the young girl who was reporting classified information in the Times that was given to her by the much older man she was sleeping with, James Wolfe.

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Sen. Tom Cotton Confirms TGP Suspicions: If China Was “Going to Suffer an Economic Contraction, They Were Not Going to Allow the World to Prosper”

Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) joined Maria Bartiromo this morning on Sunday Morning Futures. In his interview, Cotton stated at the following at the 3:00 mark on the Chinese Communist regime:

I believe the Chinese Communist leaders, when they were aware of those facts by mid-January, made the conscious decision not to explain to the world that it [the coronavirus] was transmissible between humans, not to shut down travel, not to ask for American or other kind international scientific help, but to allow this virus to escape its borders.

Because if they were going to suffer an economic contraction, they were not going to allow the world to prosper and China be the only country whose economy was declining.

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Wave Of Repos Imminent As Subprime Auto-Buyers Miss Payments

Subprime car lenders report a sharp drop in auto loan payments.

In a sign of upcoming trouble, Subprime Car Buyers Miss Loan Payments.

Credit Acceptance Corp., the lender to car buyers with subprime credit scores, warned it’s seeing a sharp drop-off in payments as people shift their financial priorities to get through the coronavirus pandemic.

As unemployment soars, borrowers are putting off payments or “reallocating resources,” Credit Acceptance said in a regulatory filing Monday, explaining that it needs more time to publish a quarterly report.

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How Does A Harvard Professor Think It's "Authoritarian" To Allow Parents To Teach Their Kids?

Harvard University law professor has called for a “presumptive ban” on homeschooling — claiming that the freedom to do so under our current laws is “authoritarian.”

“The issue is, do we think that parents should have 24/7, essentially authoritarian control over their children from ages zero to 18? I think that’s dangerous,” Elizabeth Bartholet said in an interview with Harvard Magazine.

“I think it’s always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless, and to give the powerful ones total authority.”

Bartholet stated that there is “an essentially unregulated regime in the area of homeschooling,” with “very few requirements that parents do anything.”

“[P]eople can homeschool who’ve never gone to school themselves, who don’t read or write themselves,” she said.

Bartholet also stated that homeschooling can make it easier for parents to get away with abusing their children and/or indoctrinating them with white supremacy and misogyny:

[I]t’s also important that children grow up exposed to community values, social values, democratic values, ideas about nondiscrimination and tolerance of other people’s viewpoints.

I do not, of course, want to minimize the absolute horror of child abuse. It’s disgusting; it’s heartbreaking; and anyone who isn’t a sociopath agrees that it’s necessary to protect our children.

Unfortunately, however, it’s also true that abuse is hardly something that can occur only in a child’s home. In fact, as Harvard grad and homeschooler Kerry McDonald pointed out in a letter to Harvard Magazine in response to its article, “many parents choose to homeschool their children to remove them from abuse at school, whether it’s widespread bullying by peers or, tragically, rampant abuse by teachers and school administrators themselves.”

“Banning homeschooling, or adding burdensome regulations on homeschooling families, who in many instances are fleeing a system of education that they find harmful to their children, are unnecessary attacks on law-abiding families,” McDonald continues.

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'Marine veteran', 36, is jailed for threatening to assassinate Trump

An apparent former US Army infantryman and Marine has been sentenced to 18 months in a Texasfederal prison after he threatened to assassinate President Donald Trump, the US Justice Department has announced.

Mickael Gedlu, 36, was sentenced via video teleconference by Chief U.S. District Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn on Friday. He pleaded guilty to the charges in December.

According to plea documents, Gedlu admitted to making a series of threats against the commander-in-chief's life across on social media between December 2018, and June 2019.

In one video posted to YouTube, Gedlu reportedly said: 'I am waiting for Trump to visit Dallas before I attempt to assassinate him.'

In another post made to Facebook, the 36-year-old said: 'For 20 straight months now, openly and publicly, I have been calling for President Trump's death.'

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Zinc: The Missing Element in the HCQ/COVID-19 debate

It has been known, ever since 1984, that zinc is an effective virus fighter. That year a research study discovered that taking zinc gluconate lozenges early in the course of a common cold could shorten it. After a series of apparently conflicting research studies, a 2012 review of the literatureconcluded that taking zinc early reduces the duration of a common cold by an average of 1.65 days. Since colds are mild virus infections, it is clear that zinc has anti-virus properties.

Zinc and COVID-19

When the COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) virus pandemic began, one of the glaring facts apparent to those who were familiar with the zinc research was that at least two of the three groups in the United States that were known for having zinc deficiencies (elderly people and Black Americans) were contracting and dying from COVID-19 at much greater proportions than the general public. There are no statistics available on the third group (vegans), but there is ananecdotal report of a young and robust vegan getting a severe case of COVID-19.

Correlation is not causation, and there are other reasons why African Americans and elderly people might be the most vulnerable. But medical researchers have long known some of the mechanisms through which zinc fights virus infections within the cell. In an excellent YouTube video from March 6, 2020, Dr. Seheult illustrates and explains the inner workings of COVID-19 within the cell and how zinc within the cell fights it.

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Baltimore Convention Center field hospital, with 250 beds, is set to open Monday

The Baltimore Convention Center Field Hospital is set to open Monday and begin accepting patients who have tested positive for the coronavirus.

The 250-bed makeshift hospital has been under construction for a little more than a month, after Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan set a goal of adding 6,000 hospital beds statewide in response to the pandemic, to help hospitals from being overwhelmed.

The hospital is being operated by Johns Hopkins Medicine and the University of Maryland Medical Center. It is not an intensive care unit or a testing facility, but it is set up to treat patients who are recovering from COVID-19 and still need direct medical attention.

No direct admissions can be made to the field hospital, so most patients will be transported to the field hospital through the emergency department inter-facility referrals.

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2020 Presidential Race

With the first fundraising reports of the 2020 cycle in, we are starting to get a picture of who among the large field of Democratic candidates are able to stand out from the crowd and attract donor support. Although President Donald Trump had a two-year head start, a number of Democratic candidates, through a variety of methods, have managed to pull together sizable war chests. At the same time, groups working on behalf of a number of candidates – leadership PACs, super PACs, 501(c)(4) dark money outlets and more – have also emerged and are already spending in support of their favored candidates.

Amount raised by candidates, so far: $2,484.1 million

(Lighter bar represents candidate committee money; darker bar represents outside money.)
Donald Trump (R) Incumbent

Billionaire real estate developer, businessman and television personality Donald Trump — who had never held public office — flirted with the idea of running for president for decades before jumping into the 2016 race. After running an unconventional and underfunded campaign in 2016 but receiving free media attention valued at about $5 billion, Trump’s reelection campaign looks to be flush with cash. Having declared his 2020 bid the day he took office, Trump has drawn unprecedented fundraising hauls, attracting both large and small donors.

CANDIDATE COMMITTEE MONEY: $245,757,538

OUTSIDE MONEY: $47,780,633

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Rose McGowan Calls on Joe Biden to Drop Out as Tara Reade Allegation Roils Campaign

Joe Biden has most of corporate Hollywood and a growing slate of celebrities supporting his bid for the White House. But there is a lone Hollywood figure who is creating a major commotion by calling foul on his campaign — Rose McGowan.

The Charmed actress may not seem like a heavyweight who could inflict damage on a major political career. But since former Biden staffer Tara Reade alleged that the candidate sexually assaulted her nearly three decades ago, McGowan has become a one-woman army calling out the hypocrisy of Hollywood and media elites, especially Alyssa Milano, who have backed the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements but are still supporting the presumptive Democrat nominee.

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Jeff Sessions says China ‘anger’ resonating

Former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions admits it’s “a bit strange” to be running for office without being able to hit the road and campaign in-person.

But the former Republican senator -- locked in a tough runoff battle with former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville for the Republican nomination for the Alabama Senate seat he once held -- says he’s hearing a lot about China from voters as he works from home, but uses phone and video conferencing to campaign. (The March 31 contest with Tuberville was rescheduled by Alabama to July 14 because of the outbreak).

“There has also been a lot of frustration and anger with China,” Sessions told Fox News. “People are very aware of how China covered up the virus, especially at the beginning in Wuhan, and Alabamians want the Chinese government to be held accountable.”

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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/jeff-sessions-campaigning-social-distancing-strange

Fact Check: NYT Claims Only ‘Tens of Thousands’ of Visa Workers in U.S.

CLAIM: Federal visa worker programs bring “tens of thousands” of foreign workers into the United States.

VERDICT: False. Federal agencies bring at least one million non-immigrant foreign workers into the United States each year.

The error was included in a New York Times article on April 24 about President Donald Trump’s unprecedented April 22 shift in immigration policy.

The article began accurately, saying, “President Trump’s decision to suspend family-based immigration because of the coronavirus is the beginning of a broader strategy to reduce the flow of foreigners into the United States, Stephen Miller, the architect of President Trump’s immigration agenda, told a group of conservative allies on Thursday.”

But the two authors — Michael Shear and Maggie Haberman — quickly showed their ignorance of the workforce issue, even though the federal policy of inflating the labor supply has crippled at least two presidencies and even allowed a New York real-estate developer to take the White House in 2016.

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Peter Navarro: Concerned about China exporting 'low-quality' antibody tests

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro on Monday said he’s concerned about China’s exporting “low-quality” antibody tests and accused the country of “profiteering” off the coronavirus pandemic.

“One of the things that’s on my radar that’s really troublesome is there’s a lot of these antibody tests coming in from China now that are low-quality, false readings and things like that, and we've got to be really careful,” Mr. Navarro said on “Fox & Friends.”

Experts agree that reliable antibody testing, which could determine whether someone is immune to the virus, will be key to reopening the U.S. economy. But many analysts have cautioned that the tests circulating on the market have not been given a proper sign-off by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and can yield faulty results.

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First Coronavirus death in Worcester County

The Worcester County Health Department (WCHD) confirmed the first death of a county resident this week from COVID-19: a woman in her 80’s who was a hospice patient at a county long-term care facility prior to the onset of COVID-19 illness. Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this time.

Data: Coronavirus Likely to Spark Mass Immigration Wave to Israel

The global coronavirus pandemic will likely spark a massive wave of immigration to Israel, with some 100,000 expats and new arrivals expected to move to the country once the crisis is over, according to Ministry of Absorption statistics.

An estimated 60,000 Israelis living abroad have expressed an interest in returning to Israel since the outbreak in March. “There is an awakening among Israelis living abroad,” Ministry of Absorption officials said.

A further 40,000 Jews are expected to immigrate by the end of 2020, marking an increase 5,000 from 2019’s record-breaking 35,000.

Speaking to the Hebrew-language Makor Rishon newspaper, Jewish Agency Chairman Isaac Herzog explained large waves of immigration to Israel have “occurred historically in Jewish communities around the world after many crises since the establishment of the state.”

He called on the government to prepare for absorbing such large numbers.

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Cotton Urges ‘Hard Look’ at Visas Granted to Chinese Nationals

Sunday, during an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) said, based on the past, the Chinese government was likely still attempting to steal intellectual property from the United States, including a coronavirus vaccine.

“[T]he Chinese Communist Party has been stealing America’s intellectual property for decades, and they aren’t going to magically stop in the middle of a pandemic,” he said. “In almost every state in the union, there are active cases against Chinese nationals. In Arkansas, for instance, they are accused of having stolen proprietary genomes of our farmers in East Arkansas. But in the middle of a pandemic, what’s the most valuable intellectual property in the world? It’s the research that our great laboratories and life science companies are doing on prophylactic drugs, therapeutic drugs, and ultimately a vaccine. So I have little doubt that the Chinese intelligence services are actively trying to steal America’s intellectual property as it relates to the virus that they unleashed on the world, because, of course, they want to be the country that claims credit for finding those drugs or finding a vaccine, and then use it as leverage against the rest of the world.”

Cotton told FNC’s Maria Bartiromo a “very hard look” should be taken at Chinese Nationals coming to the United States to study in specific fields.

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Pelosi: State, Local Governments Funds Coming in Next Relief Bill

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday said that Congress will provide coronavirus funding for state and local governments in a forthcoming stimulus bill.

Pelosi, appearing on CNN’s State of the Union, responded to criticism from state and local leaders including New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo who called on such funding to be included in previous legislation, including the fourth COVID-19 relief bill signed on Friday.

“Just calm down,” she said. “We will have state and local and we will have it in a very significant way.”

She also encouraged state and local to continue being vocal about their need for federal aid.

“The governors are impatient. I’m a big fan of Gov. Cuomo, my own governor, Gavin Newsom, has been so spectacular, my mayor … State and local have done their jobs magnificently.

"They should be impatient, their impatience will help us get an even bigger number,” said Pelosi.

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Fact Check: Hospitals Get Paid More For Listing Patients As Having COVID-19 Even If They Show Few Symptoms

A Minnesota state senator, who also happens to be a doctor, has come forward to reveal how hospitals are getting more in funding if they list more patients as having COVID-19, even if the patients are more likely to have something else, such as pneumonia. The issue is the loose definitions of the terms “probable” and “presumed” and how those terms can be applied. This is less on the doctors themselves and more on the health care administrators.

Even the leftist media is confirming this is true, as USA Today reports:

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Can You Feel Me?

China Threatens Australia If It Pushes For Investigation Over Coronavirus

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has reportedly threatened Australia over its push for an investigation into China’s handling of the coronavirus.

“Ambassador Cheng Jingye on Monday said the push was ‘dangerous’ and could encourage Chinese citizens to not purchase Australian exports or travel to the nation,” Sky News Australia reported. “The government however is not backing down from the call for an independent inquiry, with Foreign Minister Marise Payne criticizing the threat of an economic hit due to the push.”

Sky News Australia reporter Tom Connell said that Australian politicians were united in their push for a “global independent” investigation into the coronavirus, which originated in China.

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Why 25 Md. cops will have paid leave until the pandemic is over because of their beards

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — A year ago, Prince George’s County Police Chief Hank Stawinski broke with long-standing tradition and allowed his officers to grow beards.

Now, that order has been rescinded at the request of the county health officer who says beards aren’t compatible with protective face masks.

“We have to follow the CDC guidelines because it protects the officer, it protects his family and it protects the community," says Dr. Ernest Carter. "And so that’s why I asked him to change that policy.”

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Melinda Gates (2010): Vaccination Is The Key For Overpopulation

Maryland election board’s plan for no in-person voting is ripe for legal challenge, voting rights groups say

When members of the Maryland Board of Elections convened, they knew they would be asked to make a near-impossible decision.

Offer in-person centers to ensure every possible voter could participate in the June 2 primary, but risk the exposure of election staff and volunteers to a mysterious and deadly viral pandemic?

Or hold an election exclusively with ballots sent by mail, a system that would exclude some of the most disadvantaged voters — people with disabilities, those without housing and people temporarily displaced by the spreading outbreak?

Having listened to stern advice on both sides of the issue, board members came down on the side of public health, opting for a draft plan that does not include in-person polling.

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Maryland COVID-19 Data 4-28-2020

COVID-19 Statistics in Maryland
Number of confirmed cases: 20,113
Number of negative test results: 87,672  
Number of confirmed deaths: 929
Number of probable deaths: 87
Currently hospitalized: 1528
Acute care: 977
Intensive care: 551
Ever hospitalized: 4,268
Released from isolation: 1,295
Cases and Deaths Data Breakdown:
Parenthesis = Confirmed death, laboratory-confirmed positive COVID-19 test result
Asterisk = Probable death, death certificate lists COVID-19 as the cause of death but not yet confirmed by a laboratory test
NH = Non-Hispanic

By County

County    Cases Deaths   
Allegany    115    (5)   
Anne Arundel    1,571    (70)    8*
Baltimore City    1,977 (83)    7*
Baltimore County    2,631    (94)    13*
Calvert    139 (8)   
Caroline    69       
Carroll    416    (44)   
Cecil    163 (6)   
Charles    539 (38)    1*
Dorchester    52    (2)   
Frederick    870    (42)    6*
Garrett    4
Harford    358    (6)    7*
Howard    802 (17)    1*
Kent    73    (4)   
Montgomery    4,003 (201)    20*
Prince George's    5,496    (195)    11*
Queen Anne's    55    (4)       
St. Mary's    145    (7)   
Somerset    20
Talbot    34 (1)   
Washington    187 (3)
Wicomico    340    (5)   
Worcester    54    (1)
Data Not Available (93)    13*

By Age Range and Gender

Age/Gender    Cases Deaths   
0-9    246
10-19    512
20-29    2,293 (6)   
30-39    3,367 (13)    1*
40-49    3,555    (19)    2*
50-59    3,675    (61)    7*
60-69    2,835    (139)    10*
70-79    1,973 (219)    12*
80+    1,657    (377)    43*
Age Data Not Available   (95)    12*

Female:    10,750    (449)    50*
Male:    9,363
(480)    37*
Gender Data Not Available:  
    
By Race and Ethnicity

Race/Ethnicity    Cases  Deaths   
African-American (NH)    7,432    (365)    25*
Asian (NH)    424 (36)    2*
White (NH) 4,708    (362)    46*
Hispanic 3,309    (58)    2*
Other (NH)    721    (15)   
Data Not Available    3,519    (93)    12*

Andrew Cuomo Blames Nursing Homes as Questions Mount over Coronavirus Directive

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Saturday that nursing homes that could not comply with a March 25 directive requiring them to accept coronavirus patients should have obeyed “regulations” and transferred patients if they could not care for them.

The directive, issued March 25, stated (original emphasis): “No resident shall be denied re-admission or admission to the NH [nursing home] solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19. NHs are prohibited from requiring a hospitalized resident who is determined medically stable to be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission.”

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Boris is BACK in Downing Street

Boris Johnson is returning to work in Downing Street today - and it seems he is not the only one amid mounting signs Britons are taking matters into their own hands.

The Prime Minister is making a statement to the country before chairing the daily 9.15am 'war cabinet' on the pandemic, where the first steps on easing restrictions could be thrashed out.

But Mr Johnson is facing a maelstrom over the draconian 'social distancing' curbs that have succeeded in stemming the spread of the killer disease, but are also bringing the economy to its knees.

There are signs that Britons are starting to vote with their feet, with traffic levels rising, and more shops and constructions sites stepping up activity.

Photographs taken during rush hour showed queues building up on London roads including the A40 at Perivale and the A102 at Greenwich, while the M5 in Bristol and the M6 in Walsall were also busy with cars, vans and lorries.

Meanwhile rail commuters continue to pile onto London Underground trains as travel bosses carry on running a reduced service only for key workers, with Canning Town and Canada Water stations both busy this morning.

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Rancher in Texas

Bill de Blasio appoints wife head of racial inequality task force

Mayor Bill de Blasio's wife, Chirlane McCray, will head up a special coronavirus task force that looks into racial inequality as part of his plan to reopen the city.

He added that he believes it will take more than 20 months to fully rebuild New York City.

As part of that rebuild, de Blasio announced different councils that will focus on reopening. His wife, McCray, will head the racial inequality task force.

The First Lady, 65, will work with Deputy Mayor Phil Thompson in the role that will focus on inclusion and equity to make sure the city 'rebounds as a better and more just society than the one we left behind,' de Blasio said.

The mayor defended the decision to put his wife in charge of that council, saying that her work with the embattled ThriveNYC made her qualified because of the ideas she generated, including a $250-million-a-year mental health plan.

'In terms of fighting inequality, Thrive has gone to that point and in many ways even farther,' de Blasio said. 'I think that's exactly the kind of mindset needed for this task force.'

However, critics have said that the ThriveNYC is ineffective. It's not clear how much McCray will be paid to lead the new initiative.

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15 Uniformed Officers From 4 Different Law Enforcement Agencies Rush to Target Restaurant Owner For Violating Maryland's Lockdown Order

This is not about a virus.

15 uniformed officers from 4 different law enforcement agencies descended on a restaurant in Maryland and cited the owner for violating the state’s lockdown order.

Dave Carey, the owner of Lee’s Landing Dock Bar is facing prosecution because approximately 70 people were standing in line waiting for their takeout orders.

Mr. Carey said people waiting for their food were following the social distancing guidelines “to the letter of the law” but the police swarmed his establishment anyway.

Authorities said the restaurant was violating the lockdown order because some people were consuming drinks on the premises while they were waiting for their takeout orders.

“What exactly did we do wrong?” Carey asked. “And who had the authority to take that many resources off the road?”

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Dr. Birx Shuts Down Criticism of Decision to Reopen Jacksonville Beaches

Dr. Deborah Birx on Monday again defended the city of Jacksonville, Florida, for reopening their beaches, despite heavy criticism from national establishment media.

Birx said that Florida had excellent coronavirus infection data accessible on their website, which showed that the decision to reopen the beaches made sense.

“They had less than 20 cases per day and less than 800 in four weeks,” she said.

She said that each governor and local official should be allowed to make a decision for themselves about when to reopen their states, based on data.

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Donald Trump: Why Should America Bail Out ‘Poorly Run’ Democrat States?

President Donald Trump on Monday questioned why the federal government should bail out states facing a funding shortfall as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

“Why should the people and taxpayers of America be bailing out poorly run states (like Illinois, as example) and cities, in all cases Democrat run and managed, when most of the other states are not looking for bailout help?” Trump asked on Twitter. “I am open to discussing anything, but just asking?”

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said at his daily press conference that although he spoke to the president on Monday, they did not discuss the state’s funding gap.

Cuomo continues pressing the federal government almost daily to pass additional funding to assist his state, warning of at least a $10 billion funding shortfall.

Prior to the crisis, Illinois had $6 billion of unpaid bills, as well as $137 billion of unfunded pension liabilities.

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Wisconsin Results Show Vote-by-Mail Gives Democrats an Edge

Voting by mail in Wisconsin significantly helped a liberal candidate win a race for the state Supreme Court, an analysis by The New York Times found.

The newspaper said liberal Jill Karofsky, actually performed 10 percentage points better than her conservative opponent, incumbent Daniel Kelly, in votes cast by mail than she did at polling places earlier this month.

In all, the results suggest Democrats were better organized in the vote-by-mail efforts. The election had forced voters to decide whether to vote in-person and possibly put their health at risk during the pandemic or send in their ballots by mail.

The Times analyzed data collected from 27 Wisconsin municipalities. It showed Karofsky’s vote-by-mail advantage was consistent across the communities.

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Gov. Hogan on Trump's comments on disinfectant and sunlight to cure coronavirus

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, reacted on Sunday to President Trump’s comments on disinfectant and sunlight as a potential cure to coronavirus saying “some of the messaging” during White House news briefings “has not been great.”

Hogan made the comments on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday responding to Trump, in his White House coronavirus task force briefing Thursday, appearing to suggest that light and disinfectants might have the potential to treat the coronavirus.

“We had hundreds of calls in our hotline here in Maryland about people asking about injecting or ingesting these disinfectants, which is hard to imagine that people thought that that was serious, but people actually were thinking about this,” Hogan said on Sunday. “Was this something you could do to protect yourself?”

Trump’s comments prompted a number of stories condemning the statements, others seeking to defend the president and a scathing tweet from presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

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Consignment Store Owner: How Can Walmart, Target Still Sell Kids Clothes, I Can’t?

A Pennsylvania consignment store owner who had to lay off her employees as a result of the economic shutdown wondered why big box retailers are able to sell children’s clothes while she was forced to shut down, telling Breitbart News that stores like Target and Walmart “shouldn’t be allowed to sell kids clothes if I can’t.”

Brittany Allen, owner of Fashion Cents Consignment in Strasburg, Pennsylvania, said she employs 35 to 40 people but had to lay them off on March 16 as a result of the economic shutdown. She applied for a waiver to do small party shopping and curbside pickup but was ultimately denied.

Allen, who attended Monday’s protest in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, said:

It was all very quick. I didn’t really have time to prepare my employees about what was going to happen. We had to lay everybody off. I had some money saved up, but I had a mortgage, and I had, you know, electric and utilities to pay, and I didn’t have any way to keep anyone back on payroll. And it was really rough for everybody.

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Pelosi endorses Joe Biden

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday endorsed former Vice President Joseph R. Biden for president, calling him a voice of reason during tumultuous times.

Mrs. Pelosi, California Democrat, touted Mr. Biden’s overseeing the post-2008 recovery act and his work in helping pass Obamacare.

“And as we face [the] coronavirus, Joe has been a voice of reason and resilience, with a clear path to lead us out of this crisis,” she said, calling Mr. Biden “a leader who is the personification of hope and courage, values, authenticity, and integrity.”

LOL

China ups its spy game on US soil

For decades, China has waged an espionage war with the United States, exploiting America's comparatively open society and free-market economy to steal critical information, trade secrets and technology tools.

But as the coronavirus, officially termed COVID-19, continues to assault the globe – Beijing is upping its spy game on U.S. soil with a focus on manipulating the narrative, officials and experts say.

The primary focus now, according to several current and former intelligence officials interviewed by Fox News, is attempting to control the disease narrative inside the U.S. and cast the blame anywhere but Beijing.

One U.S. defense official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, underscored that the Chinese focus inside the U.S. remains centered on technology theft, military readiness and minimizing the blowback.

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https://www.foxnews.com/us/china-spying-us-soil-coronavirus-narrative

Potential Wuhan Coronavirus Treatment Uses UV Light to Disinfect Lungs

Maybe Trump missed his calling as a medical researcher. The president was roundly criticized for pondering whether or not UV light or other disinfectants that have proved effective at killing the Wuhan coronavirus on surfaces could somehow be administered inside the body to treat patients suffering from the disease. During Thursday's coronavirus task force briefing, President Trump asked White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx whether sunlight has been explored as a possible treatment for those suffering from disease, specifically the coronavirus. 

"Not as a treatment," Dr. Birx answered the president. "I mean, certainly fever is a good thing when you have a fever. It helps your body respond. But not as, I have not seen heat or ..."

The president cut her answer short. "I think that’s a great thing to look at," the president interjected. 

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/bronsonstocking/2020/04/24/potential-wuhan-coronavirus-treatment-uses-uv-light-to-disinfect-lungs-n2567591

Potential Wuhan Coronavirus Treatment Uses UV Light to Disinfect Lungs townhall.com

Perdue, China in joint venture Eastern Shore-type processing complex to be near Shanghai; Poultry

The company announced yesterday that it has entered into a joint venture with a Chinese company to establish a fully bTC integrated poultry processing complex near Shanghai similar to its operations on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

The complex, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year, will have a hatchery and a chicken processing plant. The chickens will be raised by contract growers, as in the United States.

"We will be bringing U.S. poultry processing techniques to China," said Dick Auletta, a spokesman for Perdue.

The arrangement with Dah Chong Hong, a large trading company that is also involved with marketing such diversified items as automobiles and cosmetics, will be Perdue's first production operation overseas.

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Publishers Notes: Idiots & Chicken Sh!ts. I will never buy any Perdue products both at home and in my restaurant. I hope other local AMERICAN restaurants will join me.

OC Car and Truck show 2020 called off, won’t come back

It’s adieu for the Ocean City Car and Truck show, after the coronavirus killed its chances of coming to the resort in 2020 and beyond.

The virus will most likely also affect this year’s Jellyfish Festival schedule as well.

“The decision was really difficult to cancel the OC Car and Truck show — it’s my longest running automotive event, and it would’ve been in its 20th anniversary year,” said Brad Hoffman, event founder and Live Wire Media owner.

The annual car show, typically held at the Ocean City convention center at 40th Street, is a car builder and a car culture enthusiast’s fever dream, as it features an array of hot rods, muscle cars, tuners, trucks and exotics.

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Coronavirus Latest: More Than 100 COVID-19 Patients Could Be Housed At Salisbury University Dorm As Soon As Tuesday

SALISBURY, Md. (WJZ) — More than 100 coronavirus patients and health care workers could soon be temporarily moving into a residence hall at Salisbury University, University System of Maryland Chancellor Jay Perman said Monday.

Beginning as early as Tuesday, patients who are recovering from COVID-19 could begin moving into the residence hall.

Peninsula Regional Medical Center is seeing an influx of coronavirus cases, the university said. Medical staff from Peninsula will monitor the patients as they continue to recover.

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2 million chickens being killed because processing plants are short-staffed

The coronavirus is having an impact on farmers and our food supply in more ways than one.

With not enough people to process the chicken because of COVID-19 restrictions, poultry farmers are being forced to euthanize their stock.

About 2 million chickens in Delaware and Maryland are being humanely killed because chicken processing plants are short-staffed.

The manpower shortage at chicken processing plants is because of community cases of COVID-19 and social distancing.

Delmarva Poultry Industry, Inc. says it investigated several options, and could not find a better solution.

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Supremes order U.S. city to explain its confiscation of legal guns

The U.S. Supreme Court has ordered officials in San Jose, California, to explain why they confiscated the legally owned guns of Lori Rodriguez.

They still have them.

The case was brought by the Second Amendment Foundation on behalf of the woman.

The Supreme Court justices have instructed city officials to respond by May 20.

"We’re encouraged by this development in the case," said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. "If the city thought they could just ignore this case and make it go away, they’re wrong."

SAF has been joined in the case by the California Gun Rights Foundation.

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How hotels may change for the post-coronavirus era

With the coronavirus pandemic effectively halting in the hospitality industry, hotels around the world would like nothing more than to return to normalcy once the threat of COVID-19 had subsided. However, the pandemic may kickstart changes in the industry that can alter nearly every aspect of a guest’s stay.

One of the first hotels to implement these new changes in The Four Seasons Hotel in New York City.

According to NBC News, these changes began last month when the property’s owner H. Ty Warner used the hotel to house medical professionals who did not want to risk spreading the coronavirus at home. With this move came a whole new operating procedure within the hotel.

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Social Distancing In Maryland

Illinois governor exceeded authority with stay-at-home order, judge rules

CHICAGO — A judge in southern Illinois ruled Monday that Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the coronavirus exceeds his emergency authority and violates individual civil rights.

Clay County Circuit Judge Michael McHaney sided with Republican Rep. Darren Bailey, who sought a temporary restraining order against the Democratic governor’s far-reaching executive order. Pritzker has relied on an April 2 statewide disaster declaration as authority to close schools, shut down nonessential businesses and limit movement by individuals from their homes because of the potentially deadly COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Given word of the ruling during his daily briefing in Chicago on the state’s response to COVID-19,Pritzker accused Bailey, a Xenia resident, of being “blindly devoted to ideology and the pursuit of personal celebrity.”

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CELEBRITY QUARANTINE MELTDOWN COMPILATION FROM WITHIN THEIR $27 MILLION MANSIONS

Fred Fleitz: End Chinese Science Student Visas

Fred Fleitz, former National Security Council chief of staff, told Newsmax TV on Monday that Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., has a "good idea" in suggesting the U.S. withhold visas for Chinese students looking to study the sciences.

Cotton said in an interview Sunday that Chinese students looking to study in the U.S. should only be able to learn the Humanities, not the sciences, as a form of retribution for the coronavirus outbreak.

Fleitz said that "Cutting off visas for Chinese nationals studying in the United States would really hit the regime hard, because so many Chinese elites send their children to American universities. I think cutting them off from studying sensitive technologies is a good move."

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Coronavirus outbreak at Long Island veterans home kills 46 vets: 'Most wicked terrorist you could ever face'

The coronavirus has swept through the Long Island State Veterans Home, killing 46 vets and sickening 51 others, according to a report Friday.

No other Long Island nursing home has a higher death toll from the virus, Newsdayreports.

“This COVID-19 is like the most wicked terrorist you could ever face,” executive director Fred Sganga told the paper.

“Who's got it? Who doesn't have it?” he said. “It's almost like an impossible battle.”

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https://www.foxnews.com/us/coronavirus-outbreak-at-long-island-veterans-home-kills-46-vets