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Ah ha!: |
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© Getty Images A photo surfaced of President Trump wearing a face mask during his tour of the Ford ventilator production facility yesterday. https://bit.ly/2yoxuDq Keep in mind: Ford’s company policy requires everyone to wear masks on the factory floor. Trump did not wear one on his tour, though. Why this is newsy: A reporter asked Trump why he did not wear a mask and Trump responded, "I had one on before. I wore one in this back area — but I didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it." 
© Twitter
And there you have it, folks! |
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| Happy Friday! I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@thehill.com — and follow along on Twitter @CateMartel and Facebook. Did someone forward this to you? Want your own copy? Sign up here to receive The Hill's 12:30 Report in your inbox daily: http://bit.ly/2kjMNnn |
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A Pakistani airliner crashed: |
| Via The New York Times’s Salman Masood, “A Pakistan International Airlines plane with at least 91 people aboard crashed on Friday in a residential area near the airport in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, officials said.” What we know: “The pilot told the control tower that he was having technical difficulties, according to Air Vice Marshal Arshad Malik, the chief executive of Pakistan International Airlines, the national carrier. He said the airline was trying to determine what those difficulties were.” At the scene: “Initial news reports said the plane had skidded off the rooftops of several houses before bursting into flame…thick plumes of smoke billowed up from the crash site.” Photo of the scene: https://bit.ly/2ZvhomC |
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| Coronavirus cases in the U.S.: 1,577,758 Deaths in the U.S.: 94,729 Breakdown of the numbers: https://cnn.it/2UAgW3y For context: This time last week, 1,419,998 Americans had tested positive for the virus and 85,974 people died in the U.S. https://bit.ly/3egeeYh OXFORD MOVES TO NEW PHASES IN VACCINE TRIALS:
Oxford University researchers are starting the next phases of clinical trials for a COVID-19 vaccine. https://bit.ly/3bUkAeb What’s next: “The Phase II trial will test the vaccine in different age groups that were not tested in the first phase, and the Phase III trial will measure how well the vaccine works in preventing infection in a large number of participants.” |
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| MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND TRAVELERS: |
| “TSA counted 318,449 people through U.S. airport checkpoints [yesterday] as Memorial Day weekend kicked off. Highest since March 21, but down 88% from last year.” (Via CNBC’s Leslie Josephs) https://bit.ly/36tg2dB |
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What happens if there is a second wave?: |
| President Trump said yesterday that he would not shut down the country if there is a second wave of coronavirus cases. https://bit.ly/2zX0fHY In Trump’s words: “People say that’s a very distinct possibility. It's standard. And we're going to put out the fires. We're not going to close the country. We’re going to put out the fires.” Op-ed: https://bit.ly/3bYTQch |
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Joe and Amy —Jamy 4 Prez!: |
| Via The Hill’s Amie Parnes and Max Greenwood, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has asked Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) to undergo vetting as a potential running mate. https://bit.ly/2ZqtuNM Did Klobuchar agree to being vetted?: That’s not clear yet. Who does the actual vetting?: “The vetting process will be handled by a select committee led by former Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (D) and longtime Biden adviser Cynthia Hogan.” The pro and con of choosing Klobuchar: “If Biden were to choose Klobuchar as his running mate, he would add a fellow moderate to the Democratic ticket — a move that may help win over some independents and centrists, but one that would almost certainly anger liberals, who are pushing Biden to choose a progressive as his running mate.” Who else is being considered: https://bit.ly/2ZqtuNM |
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You know what that ticket needs? A lil’ New Hampshire: |
| Via WMUR’s John DiStaso, Both of New Hampshire’s senators, Jeanne Shaheen (D) and Maggie Hassan (D) have been asked by former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign to be vetted as possible running mates. https://bit.ly/2TrFwTd Sen. Hassan agreed. Sen. Shaheen declined. Shaheen’s reasoning: “I'm flattered that Vice President Biden publicly mentioned my name as someone whom he would consider. I am not going to comment about his process, whatever that may be. My focus each and every day continues to be serving the people of New Hampshire in the United States Senate.” |
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What happens to the enhanced unemployment benefits?: |
| Via The Hill’s Alexander Bolton, “A debate over whether to extend enhanced unemployment benefits is emerging as a significant obstacle to getting a deal on another round of coronavirus relief legislation.” https://bit.ly/2A4XzYw How so: “With the national unemployment rate expected to creep toward 20 percent in the months ahead, the fight over whether to boost benefits for Americans who lose their jobs or to keep benefits lean to motivate laid-off employees to rejoin the workforce is set to become a defining issue ahead of the election.” |
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Well, things are definitely tense with China: |
| Via The Hill’s Niv Elis, “Increased tensions between President Trump and China over the coronavirus pandemic are threatening to complicate a recovery from the worst global economic downturn in decades.” https://bit.ly/2ZqsKs8 How so: “Trump and members of his administration, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have repeatedly attacked China, accusing it of hiding early information about the coronavirus. Tensions have flared further as U.S. states and hospitals continue to seek personal protective equipment (PPE) from China and the global race for a coronavirus vaccine raises the prospects that some countries will be left behind.” From Matthew P. Funaiole, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ China Power Project: “There’s always a worry when tensions hit these heightened levels that there’s a possibility of there being a spillover effect ... I would certainly say that the danger is higher now than in recent history that there will be a spillover effect into the economy or another avenue.” How this could play out: https://bit.ly/2ZqsKs8 |
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Lol: |
| So many social distancing sign jokes. 
© Twitter |
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| The House and Senate are out. 9:25 a.m. EDT: Vice President Pence left for Marietta, Ga. 11:40 a.m. EDT: Vice President Pence has lunch with Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R). 12:30 p.m. EDT: President Trump receives an intelligence briefing. 1:35 p.m. EDT: Vice President Pence participates in a roundtable discussion at the Waffle House corporate headquarters. 6:10 p.m. EDT: Vice President Pence lands in Washington, D.C. |
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| 11 a.m. EDT: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) held a news conference on his state’s coronavirus response. Livestream: https://cs.pn/2zdt3vT 11 a.m. EDT: New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) gave an update on New Jersey’s coronavirus outbreak. Livestream: https://cs.pn/3bWEGV7 11:30 a.m. EDT: President Trump participated in a ceremony to honor veterans and POW/MIA. Livestream: https://cs.pn/3e54OhS 2 p.m. EDT: White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany holds a press briefing. 2 p.m. EDT: Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (R) held a news conference on his state’s coronavirus response. Livestream: https://cs.pn/2zlAL71 |
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| NOW FOR THE FUN STUFF...: | |
| Today is National Vanilla Pudding Day. And for planning purposes, tomorrow is National Taffy Day and Sunday is National Escargot Day. |
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Virtual Memorial Day plans: |
| Via The New York Times, here’s a list of livestreaming events to watch throughout the weekend. For example: John Legend is performing on Amazon live today at 1 p.m. The list: https://nyti.ms/2LOZOSq |
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| And to kick off your holiday weekend, here’s a dog who is SO excited at the prospect of a new friend: https://bit.ly/3gfG08Q |
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