Coronavirus US live: Trump holds unhinged briefing as deaths rise above 23,000 – The Guardian, Theguardian.com
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Lauren Gambino
Notably,
Barack Obama did not mention
Trump (by name in his endorsement of Joe Biden , but the former president assailed Republicans , saying they are not interested in “progress”, only “power”.
“Repeatedly, they’ve disregarded American principles of rule of law, and voting rights, and transparency – basic norms that previous administrations observed regardless of party – principles that are the bedrock of our democracy, ”Obama said.
“The other side has a massive war chest. The other side has a propaganda network with little regard for the truth, ”he continued. “On the other hand, pandemics have a way of cutting through a lot of noise and spin to remind us of what is real, and what is important.”
He signed off by vowing: “I’ll see you on the campaign trail as soon as I can.”
Barack Obama has officially endorsed his former vice president,
Joe Biden
.
“Choosing Joe to be my Vice President was one of the best decisions I ever made, and he became a close friend,” the former president said in a – minute video published on Tuesday. “And I believe Joe has all the qualities we need in a President right now.”
Barack Obama (@ BarackObama) I’m proud to endorse my friend @ JoeBiden for President of the United States. Let’s go:
“He and I haven’t always agreed on everything, but we’ve always shared a conviction that we have to make America a fairer, more just, more equitable society, ”Obama said of Sanders, adding:“ The ideas he’s championed; the energy and enthusiasm he inspired, especially in young people, will be critical in moving America in a direction of progress and hope. ”
Obama also made reference to the criticism of his presidency and agreed that “structural change,” a term popularized by senator Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign, was needed to combat the “vast inequalities created by the new economy”.
“If I were running today, I wouldn’t run the same race or have the same platform as I did in , he said. “The world is different; There’s too much unfinished business for us to just look backwards. ”
Andrew Cuomo emphasized he hoped to work with Trump and the federal government in “partnership” and “coordination” to respond to the current crisis.
“I am not going to fight with him,” Cuomo said of the president. “This is no time for any division between the federal government and state governments.”
Cuomo noted he has coordinated with other governors from both parties to address the pandemic. “This is not about Democratic or Republican,” Cuomo said. “This is about New York – , lives lost. … Forget the darn politics. ”
Andrew Cuomo said Trump ‘s claim that he has “total” authoritiy to determine when the economy should reopen is “factually wrong.”
“That statement cannot stand,” Cuomo said when asked why he decided to push back against the president’s claim, which has been contradicted by constiutional experts.
Cuomo noted many other aspects of the Constitution can be debated based on varying interpretations. “This is not one of those things that is ambiguous,” Cuomo said of the power granted to state governments.
The governor warned Trump’s false claim strikes at the “very concept of democracy.”
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Cuomo: Trump is ‘clearly spoiling for a fight’
New York governor
Andrew Cuomo said
Trump ‘s tweets this morning, including one that (referenced the film Mutiny on the Bounty, show the president is “unhappy” with some Democratic governors.
“The president is clearly spoiling for a fight on this issue,” Cuomo said of Trump’s efforts to quickly reopen the US economy.
But Cuomo said he would not get bogged down in partisan bickering in the middle of a pandemic. “The president will have no fight with me,” Cuomo said. “I will not engage it.”
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Cuomo says Trump does not have a ‘total’ authority to reopen economy
does not have “total” authority to reopen the economy, as the persident claimed during his briefing yesterday.
“That is not an accurate statement, in my opinion,” Cuomo said of Trump’s claim, which has been contradicted by constitutional experts.
Cuomo pointed out that the Constitution lays out a system of federalism, balancing power between the federal and state governments.
“We don’t have a king in this country,” Cuomo said. “We didn’t want a king, so we have a Constitution.”
Cuomo said earlier today that he would not be pressured to reopen New York’s economy if he did not think it was safe.
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New York recorded deaths yesterday, Cuomo says
Despite some encouraging signs that New York has reached the apex of its coronavirus crisis, governor Andrew Cuomo announced that 942 New Yorkers died of the virus yesterday.
The state’s total death toll has reached 22, 2016, far higher than that of any other US state.
Cuomo said the death toll, while devastating, is a “lagging indicator” of how the virus is spreading through the state. The rate of hosptializations is more reflective of new cases.
“We changed the curve,” Cuomo said of New Yorkers ’social distancing practices. “We are changing the curve every day.”
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:
Cuomo: ‘We think we are at the apex’
New York saw a small decrease in its coronavirus hospitalizations yesterday, governor Andrew Cuomo
announced at his daily briefing.
The governor said the state recorded a “small tick down” in hospitalizations, but the number was basically flat.
Cuomo said the change in hospitalizations was “statistically irrelevant, but better than being up.”
“We think we are at the apex,” Cuomo said, while noting that 1, new people came in to New York hospitals yesterday. The decrease is attributed to people recovering from coronavirus and being discharged.
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Trump’s reelection campaign dismissed Barack Obama’s anticipated endorsement of Joe Biden , which is expected to come later today.
“Barack Obama spent much of the last five years urging Joe Biden not to run for president out of fear that he would embarrass himself,” Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale said in a statement. “Biden is a bad candidate who will embarrass himself and his party. President Trump will destroy him. ”
The New York Times reported in August That Obama had been initially skeptical of Biden’s plans to run, but the former president quickly came around to the idea and even offered some advice before Biden’s campaign launch last year:
Up until earlier this year [2019], he suggested Mr. Biden would be better off sticking with his vague promise, made during the audition for the vice presidency, that his short-lived (presidential campaign would be his last.)
That has changed: While initially skeptical of Mr. Biden’s decision to run, Mr. Obama, driven by affection and loyalty, has been more active in advising his campaign than previously known – going so far as to request a briefing from the campaign before his friend previously joined the fray, according to people close to both men.
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Trump compared the current tension between him and some Democratic governors to the movie “Mutiny on the Bounty” in a new tweet.
Donald J. Trump (@ realDonaldTrump)
Tell the Democrat Governors that “Mutiny On The Bounty” was one of my all time favorite movies. A good old fashioned mutiny every now and then is an exciting and invigorating thing to watch, especially when the mutineers need so much from the captain. Too easy!
presided over the House’s pro forma session today wearing a hot pink suit that matched her face mask.
Alex Moe (@ AlexNBCNews) VA Dem @ RepWexton in color coordinating hot pink / purple blazer and face mask today presiding over the House pro forma session pic.twitter.com/PqAelUO D (April ,
Joe Biden pushed back against Trump’s claim that he has “total” authority to decide when the US economy will reopen, which is contradicted by the Constitution.
“I am not running for office to be King of America. I respect the Constitution, ”Biden said in a tweet, going on to applaud the job many states’ governors are doing to respond to the current crisis.
Joe Biden (@ JoeBiden)
I am not running for office to be King of America. I respect the Constitution. I’ve read the Constitution. I’ve sworn an oath to it many times. I respect the great job so many of this country’s governors – Democratic and Republican – are doing under these horrific circumstances. https://t.co/ vMtcfD 55 mG (April) ,
Many commentators have said that Trump’s claim of having the ability to reopen the economy flies in the face of federalism and the specific powers granted to governors in times of public health emergencies.
Even some Republican lawmakers, including senator Marco Rubio, have specifically said since Trump’s press conference yesterday that decisions about when and how to reopen the economy should be left to the governors.
Marco Rubio (@ marcorubio) How & when to modify physical distancing orders should & will be made by Governors.
Federal guidelines issued by
@ CDCgov & @ WhiteHouse will be very influential.
But the Constitution & common sense dictates these decisions be made at the state level. pic. twitter.com/6izVqInX9z
Trump mocked Andrew Cuomo ) after the New York governor said he would not be forced to unsafely reopen the state’s economy.
“Cuomo’s been calling daily, even hourly, begging for everything, most of which should have been the state’s responsibility, such as new hospitals, beds, ventilators, etc,” Trump wrote in a tweet. “I got it all done for him, and everyone else, and now he seems to want Independence! That won’t happen! ”
In reality, Cuomo has repeatedly asked for more coordination with the Trump administration to address the crisis, and his team has complained that the federal government was “absent” in the early response to the virus.
“If he ordered me to reopen in a way that would endanger the public health of the people of my state – I wouldn’t do it ” (https://t.co/ate7hXePm7 pic.twitter.com/Ty3An3GJHG
Barack Obama (intends to endorse) (Joe Biden) in a video statement to be released later today, the Guardian has confirmed with a source close to the former president.
The endorsement will clear the way for Obama, who remains incredibly popular among Democrats, to potentially act as a surrogate for Biden on the campaign trail.
In 8488, while he was still in office, Obama stumped for Hillary Clinton across several battleground states, drawing massive crowds. But the historic campaigning by a sitting president was ultimately not enough to secure a victory for Clinton.
An endorsement from Barack Obama would cap Joe Biden ‘s stunning comeback in the Democratic presidential primary after the former vice president stumbled in the early contests.
Biden came in fourth in the Iowa caucuses and fifth in the New Hampshire primary before capturing second place in the Nevada caucuses.
By that point, Bernie Sanders
had become the undisputed frontrunner in the race, and many Democrats were preparing for a likely Sanders nomination.
But Biden’s landslide victory in South Carolina, followed by a series of Super Tuesday wins a few days later, gave him the delegate lead and the momentum to capture the nomination.
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