What A Day

NBA games start next week with just 22 qualifying teams finishing off the season that the pandemic put on hold back in March. We interview Tania Ganguli, who covers the Lakers for the LA Times and is reporting live from the Disney World basketball “bubble” where games will be held.The world passed 15 million coronavirus cases yesterday, with the US accounting for a quarter of that total. And in headlines: Trump announced he’ll be sending more federal officers to Chicago and Albuquerque, the US Army backs away from its twitch channel, and 7,000 QAnon devotees get kicked off Twitter.

Trump signed a memo yesterday that aims to omit undocumented immigrants from the census count. It seems like a way for Trump to side-step a Supreme Court ruling that removed citizenship questions from the census, and it's unclear how or if he'd even be able to do it. Protests in Portland have only increased in response to the presence of federal agents. Democrats in the House are working to take powers away from these so-called “rapid deployment teams."And in headlines: a Michigan judge denies the early release of a student jailed for not doing her homework, Joe Biden’s plan for caregiving, and big-city corruption from Ohio state Speaker Larry Householder.

Trump says he’s bringing back coronavirus briefings starting today. The largest teachers union in Florida is suing Governor Ron DeSantis for using an emergency order to compel public schools to fully reopen next month. Americans enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program at record high rates early on in the pandemic. Food stamps were set to be gutted by the Trump administration in March, but the pandemic led Congress to expand benefits temporarily. And in headlines: State Senator Nikema Williams will replace late Rep. John Lewis on the ballot in Georgia, more delays for Chris Nolan’s “Tenet,” and the latest moon hex updates from WitchTok.

Civil rights activists Rep. John Lewis and Minister CT Vivian passed away on Friday. Democrats in Congress are urging lawmakers to honor Lewis by passing the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act of 2020, which would restore voter protections struck down by the Supreme Court in 2013. Federal agents in camouflage are patrolling streets in Portland, Oregon,using tear gas and other violent means to control protestors. The agents reportedly came as a result of Trump’s order to have federal agencies protect federal property, statues, and monuments. And in headlines: a study found that older children spread Covid-19 at the same rate adults do, more info about the massive July 16 Twitter hack, and Minnesota police use drones to catch sunbathers.To read more about the Strike for Black Lives: j20strikeforblacklives.orgTo follow events out of Portland: oregonlive.com and opb.org

The US, Canada, and Britain are alleging that Russian cyberspies are trying to steal coronavirus vaccine research. In more upbeat pharma news, the biotech company Moderna is making progress with its vaccine, which will soon undergo Phase 3 testing. Last week was the 17th week in a row that new unemployment claims have exceeded 1 million countrywide. A new study showed that high unemployment has resulted in over 5 million people losing their insurance coverage between February and May. And in headlines: a culture of sexual harassment at Washington’s NFL team, the Supreme Court will allow Florida to enforce a poll tax, and Trump switches up his campaign manager.Donate to Florida Rights Restoration Coalition: FloridaRRC.com

All 5,300 plus Walmarts and Sam’s Clubs nationwide will begin requiring shoppers to wear masks next week. On the state level, half of the governors in the US have now instituted at least some kind of mask requirement in public settings. New safety recommendations from the National Academies of Science, Engineering,and Medicine say schools should prioritize younger children and children with special needs where it is safe and possible. But the committee offered no guidance on what level of infection makes in-person learning unsafe. And in headlines: verified Tweeters get hacked, RBG out of the hospital, and an update on Goya’s Beangate.

We talk to The Atlantic’s Ed Yong about how public health workers and officials are fighting the pandemic, and what we're now learning about the potential long-lasting effects of Covid-19.The Trump administration is now asking hospitals to send data on Covid-19 patients directly to them and not the CDC. And in headlines: Joe Biden announces new climate change proposal, Trump administration backs off plan to revoke some visas from international students, and Jair Bolsonaro gets pecked by rhea.

California is re-closing many of its businesses as cases continue to rise. LA County and San Diego County schools have agreed to cancel in-person learning this fall in favor of going back online. White House advisors to the president have been criticizing NIAID director Dr. Anthony Fauci in recent days. It definitely seems like retaliation for Fauci’s refusal to back down in the face of Trump’s bad pandemic policies. And in headlines: a judge orders federal executions delayed, AMC finds a way to stay solvent, and Australians caught KFC-handed in Melbourne.Check out America Dissected to hear Dr. Abdul El-Sayed's complete interview with Dr. Anthony Fauci: crooked.com/americadissected

Arizona’s governor pushed back the start of the school year from early-August to mid-August since his state has the worst Covid-19 numbers in the nation. Teachers unions don’t think that a two-week delay is enough to keep students, staff, and faculty safe. The Biden-Sanders joint task force put out policy recommendations last week, and left-leaning members seem happy with the direction things are moving. The next step is getting these recommendations into the official Democratic party platform next month. And in headlines: Dov Charney’s Los Angeles Apparel factory sees deadly coronavirus breakout, a new way to calculate dog years, and Tucker Carlson’s racist writer resigns.

Yesterday the Supreme Court ruled that much of eastern Oklahoma is Native American tribal land, and that the state of New York has the power to subpoena Trump’s financial records. The WHO has revised some past positions on coronavirus spread, and is now saying unequivocally that asymptomatic spread is possible, and coronavirus can linger and infect people in the air.And in headlines: Thailand could legalize same-sex civil partnerships, “The Bold and the Beautiful” hires husbands to kiss their wives, and a pro-QAnon congressional candidate’s suspect business history.