10 things you need to know today: April 15, 2020
1.
Former President Barack Obama on Tuesday formally endorsed presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden for president. Obama said Biden, who served as his vice president during his two terms in the White House, "has all the qualities we need in a president right now." Obama vowed to hit the campaign trail soon to encourage Americans to support Biden in his challenge against President Trump in November. "Choosing Joe to be my vice president was one of the best decisions I ever made," Obama said, "and he became a close friend." Obama's backing came a day after Biden's last rival for the nomination, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), endorsed him after suspending his campaign. Biden tweeted that Obama's support "means the world to Jill and me," adding that he hoped "to build on the progress we made together." [USA Today]
2.
President Trump announced Tuesday that he was cutting off payments to the World Health Organization pending a review. Trump accused the United Nations agency of bungling the response to the coronavirus pandemic. The United States contributes more than $400 million per year to the WHO's $4.8 billion budget. Trump has accused the organization of being complicit in a coverup of the early days of the coronavirus outbreak in late 2019 and early 2020. "With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have deep concerns whether America's generosity has been put to the best use possible," Trump said during the nightly White House coronavirus briefing. Trump's allegations against the WHO came as he faces increasing criticism for downplaying the coronavirus threat in the U.S. through February. [Politico, The Washington Post]
3.
New York City's health department released a revised COVID-19 death count on Tuesday that included 3,700 people who were not tested but were presumed to have died from the disease. The change increased the city's total deaths to well over 10,000, and pushed up the national COVID-19 coronavirus death toll to more than 26,000, The New York Times noted. New York City has become the epicenter of the pandemic, with far more deaths per capita than in Italy, the hardest-hit nation in Europe. New York City's health department has measured presumptive COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic's beginnings, and Mayor Bill de Blasio moved to release those figures over the weekend. Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, and Ohio also recently moved to start reporting presumed COVID-19 deaths. [The New York Times]
4.
The world economy is headed for its worst decline since the Great Depression in the 1930s due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, the International Monetary Fund said in a report released Tuesday. The IMF's 2020 World Economic Outlook said the global economy could shrink by 3 percent this year, then partially rebound in 2021 with 5.8 percent growth. "This recovery in 2021 is only partial as the level of economic activity is projected to remain below the level we had projected for 2021, before the virus hit," said Gita Gopinath, the IMF's chief economist. The coronavirus-driven collapse could result in a total loss of $9 trillion in economic output over two years, a sum bigger than German and Japanese economic production combined, Gopinath said. [Reuters]
5.
Anthony Fauci, the leading medical expert on the White House coronavirus task force, said Tuesday that President Trump's aim to start reopening parts of the economy on May 1 is "a bit overly optimistic." "We have to have something in place that is efficient and that we can rely on, and we're not there yet," Fauci told The Associated Press. Fauci said before U.S. businesses and workers can resume normal operations, public health officials have to be able to test people for the virus quickly, and effectively track and isolate people who might have been infected. The comments from Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, came as Trump clashed with governors over who would have final say on which states should lift social distancing restrictions, and when. [The Associated Press]
6.
President Trump on Tuesday backed away from his claim that he has "total" authority over when states relax social-distancing orders and reopen their economies. Trump said he would not oppose some states "reopening" before he lifts federal restrictions on movement that are due to expire at the end of April. Hours earlier, Trump had insisted that he had absolute authority over when the governors can lift their social-distancing rules and permit non-essential businesses to resume normal operations. "The governors are responsible. They have to take charge," Trump said. He added: "The governors will be very, very respectful of the presidency." Trump's earlier claim he had absolute authority prompted forceful pushback from Democratic and Republican governors alike. [The Associated Press]
7.
A Tuesday report from the Joint Committee on Taxation, a nonpartisan congressional body, found that a tax provision included in the congressional coronavirus relief package by GOP senators will overwhelmingly benefit people making over $1 million per year while costing taxpayers $90 billion in 2020 alone. The provision suspends a limitation on how much owners of "pass-through" businesses can deduct against their non-business income, such as capital gains. The limitation was initially included in the 2017 Republican tax law, capping deductions at $250,000 in losses. The suspension would allow wealthy Americans to use their losses to reduce tax burdens. The JCT study found that 82 percent of the benefits will go to about 43,000 taxpayers who earn more than $1 million, while people who make less than $100,000 will receive just 3 percent of the benefits. [The Washington Post]
8.
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) sold his Washington, D.C., home in 2017 to a group led by a donor and a powerful lobbyist for more than the market price, ProPublica reported Tuesday. The group that bought the Capitol Hill townhouse was led by John Green, a lobbyist who had donated to Burr's political campaigns and had represented clients with business before Burr's committees. The property sold for $900,000, while tax assessors and the real estate website Redfin placed its value around $800,000. A Burr spokesperson said the price was "directly in line with comparable properties recently sold in the area." Burr, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, already faced scrutiny for dumping stock holdings just before the market crashed as the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States, and after he had received an intelligence briefing on the potential impact of the outbreak. [ProPublica]
9.
German authorities on Wednesday announced that police in the country had arrested four suspected Islamic State members for allegedly plotting to attack U.S. military bases. German federal prosecutors said the suspects — identified as Azizjon B., Muhammadali G., Farhodshoh K., and Sunatullokh K. — were charged with belonging to a terrorist organization. Their alleged leader, identified as Ravsan B., was already in jail on other, unspecified charges. Prosecutors said the men, all from Tajikistan, originally planned to stage an attack in their home country but later shifted their targets to U.S. Air Force bases in Germany. They also allegedly planned to attack a person they considered critical of Islam. Prosecutors said they had obtained weapons and ordered bomb materials. [The Associated Press]
10.
Hank Steinbrenner, part-owner of the New York Yankees, died Tuesday at his Florida home after several years of poor health. He was 63. Hank Steinbrenner inherited his share of the professional baseball team along with his brother, Hal, after the death of their father, George, in 2010. George Steinbrenner bought the Yankees in 1973. Hank Steinbrenner was "introduced to the Yankees organization at a very young age, and his love for sports and competition continued to burn brightly throughout his life," the Steinbrenner family said in a statement. In recent years he also got involved in auto racing along with his son, George Michael Steinbrenner IV. The Harding Steinbrenner Racing team competed last year, with George Michael, then 22, becoming the youngest team owner ever in IndyCar racing. [The New York Times]
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