| | | | | |  | | By Anna Palmer, Jake Sherman, Eli Okun and Garrett Ross | Presented by |  | | | BREAKING: THE PRESIDENT has canceled his weekend trip to Bedminster, N.J. (NYT's MAGGIE HABERMAN was first on this.) JUST LIKE THEY PLANNED IT … -- TEXAS GOV. ABBOTT CHANGES COURSE … TEXAS TRIBUNE: "Gov. Greg Abbott orders Texas bars to close again and restaurants to reduce to 50% occupancy as coronavirus spreads," by Patrick Svitek: "Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday took his most drastic action yet to respond to the post-reopening coronavirus surge in Texas, shutting bars back down and capping restaurant capacity at 50%. He also shut down river-rafting trips and gave more freedom to local officials to restrict outdoor gatherings." -- HOUSTON CHRONICLE: "Gov. Abbott gambled Texas' reopening on contact tracing. Here's how it went bust," by Jeremy Blackman … MORE FROM THE CHRONICLE … STAY AT HOME COMING?: "Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Friday plans to move to the worst threat level, calling for a return to the stay-at-home conditions of March and April, as COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to spike, three county officials said. Hidalgo lacks the authority, however, to issue a mandatory stay-at-home order as she did in March, since Gov. Greg Abbott took control of the state's reopening in May. She has said the governor reopened the state too quickly, leaving Harris County at risk of an uncontrolled outbreak that has now unfolded." -- FLORIDA reported 8,942 new Covid cases this morning, a single-day record. … TAMPA BAY TIMES: "Florida suspends drinking at bars" -- NBC'S @mikememoli: "Florida has one-third the population of Italy. This single-day case number is higher than Italy's peak." -- ARIZONA REPUBLIC: "The percentage of positive test results in Arizona has spiked since mid-May. During the past three weeks, 19 percent of COVID-19 tests in Arizona were positive." THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE was down nearly 600 points as of publication time. MEANWHILE … AMERICAN AIRLINES announced it will join UNITED next week in starting to book flights to 100% capacity again. SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI on Rep. ELIOT ENGEL'S apparent loss in his New York primary: "I don't know that that's determined yet. DID YA KNOW … UNDER THE HOUSE DEMS' D.C. statehood bill, Washington would be renamed "Washington, Douglass Commonwealth." Happy Friday afternoon. DARRELL ISSA is still really rich. In a new financial disclosure form, he disclosed between $50 million and $100 million in Dow and S&P SPDR funds and more than $50 million in a UBS money market account. Check out Issa's disclosure, which pegs his net worth at between $171.5 million and $303.1 million, with $100 million in various lines of credit | | | | A message from PhRMA: America's biopharmaceutical companies are sharing their knowledge and resources more than ever before to speed up the development of new medicines to fight COVID-19. They're working with doctors and hospitals on over 1,100 clinical trials. Because science is how we get back to normal. More. | | | TESTING LATEST -- "The Trump administration is eyeing a new testing strategy for coronavirus, Anthony Fauci says," by WaPo's Paige Winfield Cunningham: "Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told me in an interview last night that health officials are having 'intense discussions' about what's known as 'pool testing.' The idea is that by testing samples from many people all together, officials could test more people with fewer resources. And those who are infected could be more quickly found and isolated. … "It would represent a dramatic shift from how coronavirus testing is currently being carried out in the United States … The approach works this way: Samples from, say, 20 people are combined into a single pool. One coronavirus test is used on the entire pool. If the test comes back negative, researchers know they can move on to another pool of samples. If it comes back positive, only then would each individual be tested." WaPo -- STAT'S ANDREW JOSEPH: "'Pooling would give us the capacity to go from a half a million tests a day to potentially 5 million individuals tested per day,' Deborah Birx, who is helping lead the White House's coronavirus response, told an American Society for Microbiology virtual conference this week." CT'S SENATOR ON CT'S NETWORK … CHRIS MURPHY and DRAYMOND GREEN will be on "Outside the Lines" today. THE ECONOMIC PICTURE -- "U.S. consumer spending up 8.2%, partly erasing record plunge," by AP's Martin Crutsinger: "Friday's Commerce Department report showed that Americans stepped up their spending in May despite a 4.2% decline in personal income, which had soared by 10.8% the previous month. Income had jumped in April on the strength of billions of dollars in support through government payments in the form of unemployment aid as well as one-time $1,200 stimulus checks. In May, those stimulus checks were no longer counted as income for most people." AP SHOOTING HIMSELF IN THE FOOT? -- "Trump undercuts his own campaign's minority outreach," by Anita Kumar: "[J]ust four months after his trip to India, Trump this week blocked engineers, computer programmers and other high-skilled workers — overwhelmingly from India — from entering the United States. Trump's order — ostensibly to counter the soaring unemployment of American workers during the coronavirus pandemic — threatens to undermine the inroads his campaign hoped to make with Indian Americans … "The incident is far from the only time the Trump campaign's outreach and White House's policies have clashed. Trump has advanced policies, gone off script in interviews or lashed out on Twitter in ways that contradict his own campaign's attempts to slice into the Democrats' advantages with African Americans, Asian Americans and Hispanics." POLITICO WELP … WAPO: "'Don't be a sheep': Sheriffs rebel against new statewide mask requirements," by Teo Armus: "With coronavirus infections rapidly spreading across the American South and West and more states making masks a requirement, dozens of sheriffs … are staging a rebellion against state governments. An adherence to their interpretation of [the] Constitution, they say, comes before any kind of public health advice. … "In Nevada and North Carolina on Thursday, multiple sheriffs said their Democratic governors' mask requirements were 'unconstitutional and unenforceable.' After five California counties ignored a similar directive, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) threatened to withhold state funds. Another Washington state sheriff called Inslee an 'idiot.' As they battle through viral Facebook posts and appearances on local TV and radio, these mostly Republican sheriffs have effectively blocked their governors' orders. If they refuse to enforce their rules, it is unclear who else will." WaPo | | | | GO BEYOND OUR BORDERS FROM YOUR HOME: The coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate parts of the world, and a vaccine remains out of reach. Our Global Translations newsletter, presented by Bank of America, focuses on impactful global news, trends and decisions layered with critical contextual analysis from the world's sharpest minds. From how the world is reckoning with systemic racism to how different countries are combating the latest Covid-19 spikes, Global Translations offers a unique perspective that you won't find anywhere else. SUBSCRIBE HERE. | | | | | EMERGING DISPARITIES -- "Many Latinos Couldn't Stay Home. Now Virus Cases Are Soaring," by NYT's Shawn Hubler, Thomas Fuller, Anjali Singhvi and Juliette Love with a Dinuba, Calif., dateline: "[T]here is no evidence yet that any ethnic group is inherently more vulnerable to the virus than others. But in the last two weeks, counties across the country where at least a quarter of the population is Latino have recorded an increase of 32 percent in new cases, compared to a 15 percent increase for all other counties, a Times analysis shows. … "[T]he inexorable rise since Easter in infections among Latinos — both here and in Latin American countries — has alarmed health officials and Latino organizations, who are calling for more targeted testing, more comprehensive data collection and better workplace protections as the economy reopens. And it has become a political flash point in red states." NYT BIG BROTHER WATCH -- "Coronavirus opens door to company surveillance of workers," by Mohana Ravindranath: "Employers are rushing to use digital tracking technology to reduce virus transmission in the workplace. But privacy experts worry that businesses will start using their newfound surveillance capabilities for purposes far beyond public health. The data could be used to evaluate workers' productivity, see which colleagues are holding meetings or even flag an employee who unexpectedly ducks out of the office during work hours. … "The market for privately developed apps is being fueled partly by state and local governments' struggles to ramp up similar digital tools aimed at identifying potential trouble spots for the virus. Those government-sponsored apps have typically been slow to roll out and have had little buy-in from a public that's skeptical of having their movements tracked digitally. Unlike local health authorities, employers have wide latitude to mandate workers use apps or wear tracking devices." POLITICO P-P-P-PROBLEMS -- "Small Businesses Raced to Spend PPP Funds but Covid-19 Pandemic Drags On," by WSJ's Ruth Simon and Peter Rudegeair: "Restaurants and retailers have applauded recent changes in the government's $670 billion small business rescue program that make it easier for companies battling the Covid-19 pandemic to qualify for loan forgiveness. But the increased flexibility has come late for scores of small businesses that followed the Paycheck Protection Program's original rules—and quickly used up most or all of their money." REFORM REALITY -- "U.S. police registry would fail without changes in states," by AP's Nomaan Merchant in Houston: "Without major changes in almost every state, a national police misconduct database like what the White House and Congress have proposed after George Floyd's death would fail to account for thousands of problem officers. … "Any eventual registry that emerges would depend on states reporting into it. But states and police departments track misconduct very differently, and some states currently don't track it at all. The result is a lack of reliable official data and a patchwork system in which officers can stay employed even after being arrested or convicted of a crime." AP JOHN BRESNAHAN, HEATHER CAYGLE and SARAH FERRIS: "Rep. Steve Cohen launches push for Barr impeachment probe" | | | | FOR CRITICAL NEWS AND CONTEXT YOU NEED IN 15 MINUTES OR LESS, LISTEN TO POLITICO DISPATCH: Coronavirus cases continue to spike as states take steps to reopen. Americans are demanding action from lawmakers to address racial injustice and police reform. How do you keep up with the never-ending news cycle? For quick analysis on the essential news of the day, listen to POLITICO Dispatch, our short daily podcast that keeps you up to date on the most important news affecting your life. Subscribe and listen today. | | | | | HOT ON THE LEFT -- "These Top Democrats Go Further Than Biden on Diverting Police Funds," by NYT's Reid Epstein: "Interviews with 54 Democratic National Committee members, convention superdelegates and members of a criminal justice task force convened by Mr. Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders found a near-unanimous sentiment that local governments should redirect more money toward social services, education and mental health agencies. "Very few advocate fully defunding or abolishing the police, as some activists have called for. But they are aligning themselves, as have city councils in Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Denver, Portland, Ore., and other cities, with an increasingly popular movement to drastically rethink the priorities surrounding law enforcement." NYT KNOWING JILL BIDEN -- "Running Mates: As Biden considers VP pick, Jill Biden is at his side," by NBC's Mike Memoli, Marianna Sotomayor and Deepa Shivaram: "[H]er role has been magnified in recent months in part for one simple fact: The coronavirus pandemic has meant even Biden's most senior campaign officials have spent far less time with him in person, while his wife has been a near-constant presence as they both campaign in earnest from their Delaware home. … "And now, few close to Biden doubt that what you might call 'the Jill Test' is its own vetting of sorts for some of those on his vice presidential short list." NBC DANIEL LIPPMAN: "FEC losing quorum again after Caroline Hunter resigns": "Hunter is joining the legal team of the Koch-funded group Stand Together, a nonprofit that works on criminal justice reform, education and poverty and addiction issues." BEYOND THE BELTWAY -- "Governments eye new taxes on cigarettes, homes and tech giants to pay for big budget shortfalls related to the coronavirus," by WaPo's Tony Romm: "The increases that have been proposed — and in some cases adopted — reflect growing desperation on the part of government leaders nationwide. Many have found that recent spending cuts, furloughs and layoffs have not been enough to shore up their sagging finances, forcing them to consider more politically noxious and economically risky moves in the middle of an economic crisis." WaPo THE NEW COLD WAR -- "China's Military Provokes Its Neighbors, but the Message Is for the United States," by NYT's Steven Lee Myers: "With the world distracted by the coronavirus pandemic, China's military has encroached upon its neighbors' territories on several fronts throughout the spring and now into summer, flexing its military might in ways that have raised alarms across Asia and in Washington. … "China claims all of its recent operations are defensive, but each increases the risk of a military clash, whether intended or not. … China's military is widely thought to remain far behind American armed forces, but it has caught up in some areas, including the expansion of its naval power and the deployment of anti-ship and antiaircraft missiles." | | | | A message from PhRMA:   America's biopharmaceutical companies will continue working day and night until they beat coronavirus. Because science is how we get back to normal. 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