04-01-20 | Axios
Trump’s new dark, dire outlook
Why Read: This short Axios piece sums up one of the most sobering Trump press conferences to date. As Axios writes, “Never has President Trump looked and sounded so somber and downbeat as he did at dinnertime yesterday as walked America through the “very, very painful” days of death ahead. … It was a moment the history books won’t forget: Trump, who a week ago was talking about an Easter-time return to work, warned in grim detail of the potential for 100,000 to 240,000 deaths.”
03-31-20 | Reuters
With 2020 race all but halted over coronavirus, Biden quietly widens lead over Trump: Reuters/Ipsos poll
Why Read: Although the U.S. Presidential campaign is frozen by the COVID-19 pandemic, former Vice President Joe Biden continues to gather strength. Registered voters prefer Biden over Trump by 46% to 40%. An overwhelming majority of Americans are concerned (89%) COVID-19, but remain divided in their views of President Trump’s response (44% approve). That compares with a 70% approval rating for their state governors’ handling of the pandemic.
03-30-20 | Newsweek
The Coronavirus Will Change How We Work Forever
Why Read: This article explains why some aspects of America’s “Work From Home Revolution” may be here to stay. One expert says there may be no turning back. “If you already have a trend or shift that is growing, a shock like the coronavirus pandemic tends to be supportive of that, accelerating the trend.”
03-29-20 | New York Magazine
The Coronavirus Relief Package Should Work — for Now
Why Read: The U.S. Congress moved swiftly on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis to enact a sweeping rescue package designed to resist economic collapse. “… [T]he bill … uses two main tools to promote financial normalcy in this very abnormal period. One is greatly expanded unemployment insurance benefits for people who are thrown out of work due to the crisis — expanded in the sense of being more generous and also easier to qualify for. The other tool is loans and grants to businesses, with the grants tied to a requirement to keep workers on the payroll. These tools … will go a long way toward making the response to the plague financially bearable for most American households.”
03-29-20 | The Wall Street Journal
America’s Make-or-Break Week
Why Read: This article details the staggering effects the coronavirus pandemic has had throughout American society in a short amount of time and points out that with April’s bills coming due, this is a critical week for U.S. livelihoods: “The decisions they make this week could shape how deeply the economy is damaged by the coronavirus pandemic.”
03-26-20 | The Economist
The state in the time of covid-19
Why Read: The Economist is featuring two different covers this week. The British and American version focuses on how the role of governments has quickly expanded to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, why this expansion is likely permanent and then what the implications of bigger government in today’s society means.
