Politics

The American economy has lost more than 700,000 jobs in the first weeks of government efforts to slow the spread of the CCP virus. The hospitality industry was hit the hardest, but virtually no sector escaped the contraction, data released April 3 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows. One after another, governors across the country issued shutdown orders, closing bars, theaters, and all “non-essential” businesses. The CCP virus, also known as the novel coronavirus, broke out in the central Chinese city of Wuhan around November 2019 and was allowed to spread across China and the world due to a coverup and mismanagement by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The United States has now more than 240,000 cases and nearly 5,000 dead. The BLS data doesnt capture the full brunt of the shutdown, as its based on a survey conducted between March 8 and March 14, before many of the mitigation measures were adopted. Claims for unemployment benefits soared to a record high of more than 6..

A reporter with One America News Network (OAN) attended the White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing on Thursday night, one day after the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) removed her network from its rotation of reporters covering the briefing. “Jonathan Karl, an ABC News reporter and president of the WHCA, said in a statement to news outlets that he asked Grisham to make Rion sit in a section of seating reserved for White House guests,” Charles Herring, CEO of OAN, said in an statement emailed to The Epoch Times on Friday. Chanel Rion, the reporter, stood in the back of the briefing room and was called on by President Donald Trump. She asked Trump about his potentially using the Defense Production Act for things other than masks and ventilators. Jared Kusher, Trumps son-in-law and a top White House adviser, answered the question, explaining how officials are spending time trying to pin down what quantity of supplies state officials actually need, versus what theyre ..

President Donald Trump will announce on Friday free CCP virus treatment for uninsured Americans. Around 30 million people in the country lack insurance. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, top administration officials are focused on a plan that would relieve people without insurance from paying for virus testing or treatment. COVID-19 is a disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. “The president has made it clear: we dont want any American to worry about the cost of getting a test or the cost of getting treatment,” Vice President Mike Pence, the White House Coronavirus Task Force head, told reporters on Thursday night. The task force is working on a proposal that would use some of the $100 billion directed toward hospitals in a recent piece of legislation to compensate hospitals directly for any CCP virus treatment they provide to uninsured Americans. The exact details are still being worked out. A staff member of Odyssey..

President Donald Trump late Thursday issued a letter to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) responding to Schumers criticisms of the federal governments handling of the CCP virus pandemic. “Thank you for your Democrat public relations letter and incorrect sound bites, which are wrong in every way,” Trump said in the letter. In a letter earlier in the day, Schumer wrote to Trump saying that the “national response is far behind where it should be.” The letter raised the issue of shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies in New York state and other areas across the United States, and called for the Trump administration to “designate a senior military officer to fix this urgent problem.” Schumer also accused Trump of having dismissed the Defense Production Act (DPA) “as not being needed,” and criticized Trumps appointment of White House aide Peter Navarro as the National DPA Policy Coordinator as “woefully unqualified” for solving the PPE and ventil..

The lead judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court reprimanded the FBI over widespread flaws in surveillance applications uncovered by the Justice Department inspector general. In an order issued on April 3, Judge James Boasberg directed the FBI to turn over the names of the targets in the 29 applications audited by the inspector general. The inspector generals audit, the results of which were released in a memo to the FBI on March 30, found that every one of the 29 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) applications reviewed had a missing or inadequate Woods File—a group of records that substantiate the facts the bureau asserts in applications to the court. The inspector general concluded that it was not confident that the FBIs procedures were adequate in ensuring the bureau followed its own policy that FISA applications have to be “scrupulously accurate.” “It would be an understatement to note that such lack of confidence appears well founded,” Boasberg wrote. I..

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday recommended that Americans should start to wear cloth face coverings in public settings. The CDCs suggestions come after new evidence showed that patients with COVID-19—the disease caused by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus—could spread the virus before showing any symptoms. The agency urged people to use the cloth face coverings in places where social distancing measures are challenging to maintain, including grocery stores and pharmacies, especially in areas of significant community-based transmission. However, the CDC emphasized people should still follow the 6-feet rule of social distancing. “It is critical to emphasize that maintaining 6-feet social distancing remains important to slowing the spread of the virus,” the agency said in a statement. “CDC is additionally advising the use of simple cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the virus and help people who may have the virus and do not know it f..

President Donald Trump has fired Michael Atkinson, the inspector general for the intelligence community (ICIG) who handled the anonymous whistleblower complaint that triggered the House Democratic-led impeachment inquiry against the president. In a letter to the Senate intelligence committee on Friday, Trump said that he would remove Atkinson from office “effective 30 days from today.” “It is extremely important that we promote the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of Federal programs and activities,” Trump wrote. “The Inspectors General have a critical role in the achievement of these goals,” he continued. “As is the case with regard to other positions where I, as President, have the power of appointment, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, it is vital that I have the fullest confidence in the appointees serving as Inspectors General.” “That is no longer the case with regard to this Inspector General,” Trump said in the letter, referring to Atkinson. Trump sai..

President Donald Trump announced on April 3 that the government will pay for the medical treatment of COVID-19 for uninsured Americans using funds from the stimulus package approved by Congress last month. “This should alleviate any concern uninsured Americans may have about seeking the coronavirus treatment,” Trump said during a press briefing on April 3, adding that the move is “very much in the favor of our great people.” Trump made the announcement as the United States experienced the worst day yet of the pandemic. New York state reported the highest daily death toll from COVID-19 for April 2, while other parts of the country confirmed an alarming number of cases. Trump signed the largest stimulus bill in U.S. history on March 27, unlocking $2.2 trillion in funds to battle the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus, commonly known as the coronavirus, and to support American workers and businesses as millions of people stay at home to help stop the spread of the disease. Administra..

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) has resigned from Congress as he prepares to begin working at the White House as President Trumps next chief of staff, a role which he is expected to commence on March 31. In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Meadows said that “serving the people of North Carolinas 11th congressional district for these last seven years has been the honor of my life. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity.” He signed off the letter with “thank you and God bless you in the days ahead.” Meadows, who will replace his former colleague and Freedom Caucus member, Mick Mulvaney, wrote that his resignation was effective as of 5 p.m. on March 30. Mulvaney has served as Trumps acting chief of staff for a little more than a year. He was the presidents third chief of staff following Reince Priebus and John Kelly, who previously served in the role. Trump named Meadows as the next White House Chief of Staff in a tweet earlier this month, where he also announced t..

The Justice Department watchdog determined that the FBI failed to properly document the facts in 29 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) applications reviewed for an audit. The findings are part of a report (pdf) released on March 30 by the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General. The office had previously found widespread fundamental and serious errors in the FISA applications used to spy on Trump campaign associate Carter Page. The review of the Page applications determined FBI agents broke bureau policy by failing to adequately maintain a so-called “Woods file,” a set of records substantiating the factual assertions in surveillance applications. The flaws with the surveillance of Page prompted the inspector general to launch a review of the Woods procedures throughout the bureau, which in turn unearthed pervasive errors spanning every FISA application audited. “We believe that a deficiency in the FBIs efforts to support the factual statements in FISA application..