Category Archives: New York

Trump says he’s ‘learned a lot from Richard Nixon’ during Fox interview – live

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Trump’s mention of tapes in his extraordinary references, in a live phone call into Fox News, to how he learned from Richard Nixon is interesting, to say the least.

“When I fired Comey, you know what hit the fan,” Trump on Fox News. "I study history," including on Nixon.
"Of course, there was one difference. ... #1 he may have been guilty. And #2 he had tapes all over the place. I wasn’t guilty. I did nothing wrong. And there were no tapes.” https://t.co/xJIkEuPY7O

Trump tweeted: “James Comey better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!”

The tweet, which if taken at face value would suggest Trump has been secretly taping White House meetings, came after the New York Times reported that he demanded “loyalty” from Comey in a private dinner held shortly after Trump took office.

Related: Trump threatens ex-FBI head Comey with possible 'tapes' of conversations

Here’s transcript of Trump’s full comments about Richard Nixon during his call in to Fox News this morning.

Here's the transcript of Trump's comments this morning about what he learned from Richard Nixon. (Of course, Trump did fire a bunch of people.) pic.twitter.com/Ltl8WKvTPe

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Working out in a city under quarantine – in pictures

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Over the past six weeks, New Yorkers have been exercising in unexpected ways amid the pandemic. With gyms closed and social distancing in place, how are city-dwellers staying active? Bess Adler photographed 10 unusual pandemic-inspired exercises she has come across in New York City – and this is the result

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New York reports 15 cases of rare illness in children possibly linked to Covid-19

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More than 100 cases of unusual illness have emerged in at least six countries as 15 New York patients aged two to 15 hospitalized

New York City’s health department has reported 15 cases of a rare but potentially lethal inflammatory syndrome in children that may be linked to coronavirus infections.

More than 100 cases of the unusual illness have now emerged in at least six countries, with doctors in Britain, the US, France, Italy, Spain and Switzerland investigating the condition.

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Coronavirus US live: Pence says White House looking to wind down taskforce as death toll passes 70,000

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Republican senator Lamar Alexander said that Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell and House speaker Nancy Pelosi should accept Trump’s offer to make rapid coronavirus testing available to lawmakers.

“From a public health point of view, this is not mostly about protecting members of Congress. It is about protecting the people members might infect. Bringing 100 or 535 members from across the country to Washington, D.C.—a coronavirus hotspot—and then sending them home each weekend creates a highly efficient virus spreading machine,” Alexander said in a new statement.

My statement on COVID-19 testing for members of Congress.https://t.co/x3tjhVJsWo pic.twitter.com/ywRMZYye1c

Trump’s press secretary has responded to the vice president’s comments that the White House is looking to wind down the coronavirus task force in the coming weeks.

Press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the White House would still be “involving medical experts” in decisions related to the coronavirus response.

Reporting on the task force is being misconstrued to suggest the White House is no longer involving medical experts. This is totally false.

President @realDonaldTrump will continue his data-driven approach towards safely re-opening.

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California to reopen some businesses this week as lockdowns ease across US – as it happened

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That’s all for today, thanks for following along. A recap of the day:

Senator Elizabeth Warren said today she believed Joe Biden’s comments on the sexual assault allegation were “credible and convincing”.

“I saw the reports of what Ms [Tara] Reade said, I saw an interview with vice-president Biden. I appreciate that the vice-president took a lot of questions, tough questions. And he answered them directly and respectfully. The vice-president’s answers were credible and convincing,” the senator and former presidential candidate said, according to a CNN reporter.

Related: Senate rejects Joe Biden's request to search for records on Tara Reade

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Coronavirus US live: states ponder reopening as deaths pass 65,000

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Donald Trump disputed warnings from the US Capitol physician and said it is safe for the Senate to return to the Washington DC building next week in a tweet which, as usual, needs a bit of explanation.

There is tremendous CoronaVirus testing capacity in Washington for the Senators returning to Capital Hill on Monday. Likewise the House, which should return but isn’t because of Crazy Nancy P. The 5 minute Abbott Test will be used. Please inform Dr. Brian P. Monahan. @MarkMeadows

The White House said it would be “counterproductive” for Dr Anthony Fauci to testify before Congress next week and is blocking him from speaking about the government’s response to the pandemic ina House committee hearing.

Fauci, who has worked at the National Institute of Health since 1968, has been a source of measured, expert analysis on the Covid-19 outbreak in press briefings and interviews. This has put him at odds with the president, who has downplayed the pandemic and disputed facts about the crisis.

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Coronavirus US live: Trump hails Senate return and says Pelosi ‘crazy’ for not reopening House – as it happened

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Here’s a look at today’s major news items ...

Donald Trump has appeared to confirm that Kim Jong Un is “alive and well” after weeks of speculation over the North Korean leader’s health.

“I, for one, am glad to see he is back, and well!” Trump wrote, quote-tweeting North Korean state media photos of Kim attending a ribbon cutting ceremony at the Sunchon Phosphatic Fertilizer Factory.

I, for one, am glad to see he is back, and well! https://t.co/mIWVeRMnOJ

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Coronavirus US live: intelligence report concludes Covid-19 was not ‘manmade or genetically modified’

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House speaker Nancy Pelosi was careful not to criticize Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell for calling senators back to Washington starting next week.

Pelosi and majority leader Steny Hoyer originally said the House would also return next week, but they reversed that decision after a consultation with the Capitol’s attending physician.

The office of the director of national intelligence has released an unusual statement saying officials do not believe coronavirus was manmade, echoing many health experts.

“The Intelligence Community also concurs with the wide scientific consensus that the COVID-19 virus was not manmade or genetically modified,” the statement reads.

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Coronavirus: US reaches one million confirmed cases – live updates

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Mike Pence’s office has dubiously argued the vice president does not need to wear a mask because he is regularly tested for coronavirus.

The vice president faced questions about his lack of mask usage earlier this month after a photo circulated of a mask-less Pence greeting Colorado governor Jared Polis, who was wearing a mask in the picture.

Vice President Mike Pence was criticized for ignoring mask guidelines when visiting the Mayo Clinic facilities in Minnesota today.

Footage of Pence’s visit showed the vice president not covering his face as he met with the clinic’s employees and at least one patient.

PENCE flouts Mayo Clinic policy that everyone on campus wear a mask, even as he meets with staff and a patient. pic.twitter.com/kfo64KQDhU

Mayo Clinic had informed @VP of the masking policy prior to his arrival today.

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New York ER doctor who treated coronavirus patients dies by suicide

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Dr Lorna Breen worked at New York-Presbyterian Allen hospital and was ‘truly in the trenches’, her father said

A top emergency room doctor in New York who was working on the frontline trying to save coronavirus victims at the height of the pandemic and also suffered the disease herself has died.

Related: A whip-smart neurologist, a social worker who sang Broadway: US health workers who died from Covid-19

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Coronavirus US live: Andrew Cuomo slams Senate leader Mitch McConnell over ‘reckless’ state bankruptcy proposal

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Dr Deborah Birx reportedly had to convince Trump to come out against Georgia’s plan to start reopening non-essential businesses this Friday.

Trump said during yesterday’s press conference that he disagreed “strongly” with Georgia governor Brian Kemp’s reopening plan, which many public health experts have warned is dangerously hasty.

At a meeting before Wednesday’s briefing, task force members discussed the likelihood of being asked about [Kemp’s] controversial move to open up many businesses such as nail salons and bowling alleys, [a White House] source added. ...

During the meeting, Dr. Anthony Fauci and other task force members said if the scientists were not in agreement with Trump on the Georgia issue during the news conference it would pose a problem.

Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer said she would likely extend the state’s stay-at-home order while looking at allowing some activties with restrictions in place, emphasizing that the state’s reopening would take place in waves.

“It will permit some activity if our numbers continue to go down and our testing continues to go up,” the Democratic governor told MSNBC this morning. “But It’s too early to say precisely what each wave looks like and when it happens.”

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says reopening has to be "strategic and thoughtful": "I've heard governors across the country, on both sides of the aisle, say it's not going to be like flipping a light switch, we're not just going to go back to pre-Covid 19 posture" pic.twitter.com/6gGHbUkFPC

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Coronavirus US live: Trump says he’s signed order restricting immigration – as it happened

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America’s addiction to mass incarceration could almost double its number of deaths from coronavirus, with jails acting as incubators of the disease and spreading a further 100,000 fatalities across the US.

The startling warning comes from groundbreaking modeling by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and academic researchers, released on Wednesday.

Related: Mass incarceration could add 100,000 deaths to US coronavirus toll, study finds

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‘Our lives are expendable’: NYC subway workers speak out after dozens of Covid-19 deaths

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Transit workers in New York City are afraid to go back to work after 68 employees have died from coronavirus, and say authorities could have done more to protect them.

'They want to call us heroes now, but how can you call up heroes when you didn't give your heroes proper equipment to fight this,' said conductor Tramell Thompson. 

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Coronavirus US live: Cuomo says New York cases ‘coming down’ but warns against rush to reopen

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New York governor Andrew Cuomo said it would be a “major, major undertaking” to develop a plan on reopening the state’s schools.

Cuomo emphasized no school district was allowed to reopen at the moment, as the state has mandated schools to remain closed for now.

New York governor Andrew Cuomo said some hospitals in the state would send the results of its hydroxychloroquine trials to federal health officials today.

Cuomo declined to describe the results of the trials, focused on whether the anti-malaria drug can help treat coronavirus patients.

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Coronavirus US live: Cuomo says Trump should ‘go to work’ after president lashes out during briefing

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New York governor Andrew Cuomo reiterated that the federal government must be involved in expanding testing capacity, after Trump tweeted it was up to the states to make tests more widely available.

“If we don’t have federal help on testing, that’s a real problem,” Cuomo said.

Trump sent a series of tweets trying to deflect responsibility for the coronavirus crisis, suggesting states are the ones who need to expand testing capacity.

The States have to step up their TESTING!

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Michael Cohen to be released from prison over coronavirus fears – report

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Trump’s ex-fixer will remain under quarantine for 14 days before he is released to serve the rest of his sentence in home confinement

Donald Trump’s former lawyer and longtime fixer Michael Cohen will reportedly be released from federal prison to serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cohen is currently locked up at FCI Otisville in New York after pleading guilty to numerous charges, including campaign finance fraud and lying to Congress. Cohen began serving his sentence last May and was scheduled to be released from prison in November 2021.

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Coronavirus US live: Trump threatens to close Congress over ‘obstruction’

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Kari Paul here, logging out for the night. Below are some top stories to be aware of from the last few hours:

For those of us on the West Coast wondering “what’s next?” here is a pretty comprehensive look at what needs to be done to reopen California, written by two medical doctors.

In short, to reopen we will need much more access to testing so we can localize and isolate new cases of the virus, and restrictions on large gatherings will likely persist for awhile. In other words, we are all going to be working from home and washing our hands constantly for the foreseeable future.

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Trump spoiling for a fight over reopening economy, says Cuomo – video

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The New York governor has brushed off Donald Trump's claim that the president has the ultimate say on when and how to reopen the economy. Andrew Cuomo says Trump's assertion is inaccurate and unconstitutional, adding: 'There are many things you can debate in the constitution because they are ambiguous. This is not one of those things that is ambiguous.'

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Coronavirus US live: Andrew Cuomo details ‘horrific level of pain’ as deaths pass 10,000 in New York

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It’s been one month since Trump declared a national emergency over the coronavirus pandemic, and many of his key promises remain unfulfilled.

An in-depth NPR investigation found many of the pledges that Trump made in his March 13 Rose Garden speech have only been parially realized, while others have gone completely ignored.

NPR’s Investigations Team dug into each of the claims made from the podium that day. And rather than a sweeping national campaign of screening, drive-through sample collection and lab testing, it found a smattering of small pilot projects and aborted efforts.

In some cases, no action was taken at all.

Independent congressman Justin Amash pushed back against Trump’s claim that he has the authority to reopen the economy at the federal level, an assertion that is also challenged by constitutional experts.

President Trump is flat-out wrong. The president has no authority to “close down” or “open up” the states. He’s the one creating conflict and confusion. Put down the authoritarianism and read the Constitution. https://t.co/3AFqRx7YTX

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Cuomo undercuts De Blasio bid to keep New York schools shut until September

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  • New York City mayor announces schools closed until autumn
  • Shortly afterwards, governor insists decision to close is his

New York governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City mayor Bill de Blasio once again had differing opinions on who has authority to implement certain Covid-19 policies.

This time, it involved De Blasio’s announcement on Saturday morning that New York City’s school district, which oversees 1.1 million students, would shutter for the rest of the academic year to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. De Blasio said his administration was forging a “comprehensive plan” to safely reopen schools in September and that “next year is going to have to be the greatest academic year New York public schools have ever had”.

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