January 1, White House: Trump Tests Negative for COVID-19

This Day in History | 1972

The Godfather, directed by Francis Ford Coppola,  opens in theaters across America. 

Good morning Middle Americans, 

President Trump has tested negative for coronavirus, at least according to the White House doctor. But there are plenty of skeptics out there who simply refuse to trust anything coming out of the president’s mouth. And it could cost all of us. 

Panic buying is emptying store shelves. Fights are breaking out at stores.  Deep breaths everyone. It’s a good time to think about how lucky we are in this country. In some places like Venezuela, empty store shelves have been the normal for a long time. 

We should fully expect to hear the political rhetoric reach new lows this week. Neither side will let this crisis go to waste. 

It should be interesting to see how Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden handle coronavirus during their debate tonight. The Democratic primary is all but over. Will Bernie Sanders use the event to try an skewer Biden? Will Biden stumble?  It’s a very high risk, low reward night for former Vice President Biden. 

Read all about it. 

– Fraser Dixon

Trump Tests Negative for Coronavirus, White House Doctor Says

(CNBC) – President Donald Trump has tested negative for the coronavirus, according to the White House physician. 

Trump opted to take the test after the press secretary for Brazil’s president tested positive for the virus. Trump dined with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his press secretary at Mar-a-Lago. Bolsonaro said Friday that he tested negative for the virus. 

Trump had said earlier Saturday that he had taken a test for the coronavirus and was awaiting results. He said he had decided he would do so after a press conference Friday, in which he was pressed on whether he would take a test. One reporter asked whether he was being “selfish” by not getting tested – even when other administration officials advised self-isolation after exposure to an infected person.

“I didn’t say I wasn’t going to be tested,” Trump pushed back. 

According to the note from the White House physician, “last night after an in-depth discussion with the President regarding COVID-19 testing, he elected to proceed.”

“This evening,” the White House physician said, “I received confirmation that the test is negative.”

The White House physician added that he has been in “daily contact” with the Center for Disease Control and White House Coronavirus Task Force.

“We are encouraging the implementation of all their best practices for exposure reduction and transmission mitigation,” he said.

Find out more here

See the latest numbers on the growing sick map

Brawls and Screaming at Stores Across America as Panic Buying Intensifies

(The Daily Mail) – Disturbing footage has emerged on social media showing fights breaking out in stores across the country as panicked Americans rush to stock up on supplies amid the national coronavirus emergency. 

Two separate videos were posted from New York and Georgia on Thursday which showed intense and brutal fights erupting between tense customers battling through the crowds flooding into stores. 

A brawl erupted in a Georgia Sam’s Club packed with shoppers during which two feuding men slashed each other with broken wine bottles.

A second incident in a Costco in Brooklyn saw an employee pleading with two women to calm down after a screaming match began when carts collided in the mobbed store. 

See the disturbing footage here

Biden, Sanders to Debate Against Backdrop of Global Pandemic

(AP) — As the two remaining Democratic presidential candidates return to the debate stage, their party, the stakes, and the world look much different than in their last meeting less than three weeks ago.

The fast-moving coronavirus was something of an afterthought in that debate; now the escalating crisis is likely to dominate Sunday’s contest. Rising infections in the United States and around the world have prompted a dramatic slowdown of global travel, upended financial markets, and raised questions about President Donald Trump’s ability to lead the nation through a prolonged period of uncertainty.

Just two Democrats — former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders — remain to make the case that they are best-positioned to challenge Trump in November. Five other candidates who joined them on stage in the Feb. 25 debate in South Carolina have dropped out, with many rallying behind Biden’s surging candidacy.

For both Biden and Sanders, the debate is a moment to display their leadership skills in front of what could be one of the largest audiences of the primary. They’ll aim to draw a contrast with Trump, but also with each other, arguing that they have the right experience, temperament and policy prescriptions to lead the nation through a crisis.

Read more here