The Supreme Court on Friday said it would postpone oral arguments scheduled for its April session amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A court spokeswoman said the move was in line with recommended public health guidance in response to the outbreak, which has infected more than 750 people in Washington, D.C., and thousands more in surrounding areas in Maryland and Virginia.

The U.S. has confirmed around 261,000 cases and more than 6,900 deaths.

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“In keeping with public health guidance in response to COVID-19, the Court will postpone the oral arguments currently scheduled for the April session,” court spokeswoman Kathleen Arberg said in a statement.

The justices had been scheduled to hear arguments over six days in late April. The Friday announcement comes after the court postponed oral arguments scheduled for its March session, including a landmark dispute over subpoenas for President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump fires intelligence community inspector general who flagged Ukraine whistleblower complaint Trump organization has laid off over 1000 employees due to pandemic: report Trump invokes Defense Production Act to prevent export of surgical masks, gloves MORE’s financial records.

The court will consider rescheduling arguments for later in the term, which runs through June, if future public health and safety guidance allows it, or may explore other options, Arberg said.

“The court will consider a range of scheduling options and other alternatives if arguments cannot be held in the courtroom before the end of the term,” she said.

The spokeswoman offered no details about alternatives, but state and federal courts across the country have turned to video and telephone technology as a means to hold hearings amid courtroom closures, and some Supreme Court watchers have urged the justices to do likewise.

The justices continue to hold regularly scheduled conferences, with some justices participating remotely, and will continue to decide cases that have been argued so far this term.

Six of the nine justices are age 65 or older, placing them in a population that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers to be at risk for serious illness from coronavirus. The older justices are Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 87; Stephen Breyer, 81; Clarence Thomas, 71; Samuel Alito, 70; and John Roberts and Sonia Sotomayor, 65.

The Pentagon is facing growing scrutiny over whether it is doing enough to protect service members from the coronavirus.

The questions were amplified this week as a Navy captain dramatically warned about an outbreak on his aircraft carrier — and the Navy subsequently fired him in equally dramatic fashion.

After the captain’s firing, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam SmithDavid (Adam) Adam SmithOvernight Defense: Aircraft carrier captain removed from duty after pleading for help with outbreak | Trump to expand use of defense law to build ventilators | Hospital ships receiving few patients Aircraft carrier captain removed from duty after pleading for help with coronavirus outbreak Top Armed Services Republican unveils proposals on military families, acquisition reform MORE (D-Wash.) and three subcommittee chairs said they were “concerned about the lack of guidance from Department of Defense leadership” and that Defense Secretary Mark EsperMark EsperPentagon may treat coronavirus patients aboard Navy hospital ship A defining moment in our medical supply chain crisis Military personnel to handle coronavirus patients at facilities in NYC, New Orleans and Dallas MORE is “forcing” commanders “to make decisions on matters outside of their expertise while under immense pressure.”

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More broadly, the number of infected service members is nearing 1,000, raising questions about whether the military is placing too much emphasis on remaining postured for a potential war at the expense of troops’ health.

Esper has defended the Pentagon’s response to the crisis, and he and other officials repeatedly have said their top priority is protecting personnel.

At the same time, Esper has stressed the military must maintain its readiness to fight a war.

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“There seems to be this narrative out there that we should just shut down the entire United States military and address the problem that way,” he said at a White House briefing this week. “That’s not feasible. We have a mission. Our mission is to protect the United States of America and our people, and so we live and work in cramped quarters, whether it’s an aircraft carrier, a submarine, a tank, a bomber. It’s the nature of our business.”

Esper added he’s “confident” commanders are “taking every reasonable precaution” to follow social distancing guidelines and sanitize their environments.

Rep. Mac ThornberryWilliam (Mac) McClellan ThornberryTop Armed Services Republican unveils proposals on military families, acquisition reform House panel delays consideration of annual defense policy bill Congressionally created commission recommends requiring that women register for draft MORE (R-Texas), the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, suggested this week he thinks the Pentagon could have been doing more earlier, but added the slow reaction is a nationwide issue.

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“I think we, the whole society, including the military, has been playing catch up on COVID-19 because we have never seen anything like this before,” he said on a conference call with reporters in response to a question from The Hill. “So I don’t think you could say that any of us have done enough.”

“You can always, with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, [say] ‘Well, you should have made that decision two weeks ago,’ but I don’t know, this thing’s moving so fast and is so challenging, I want to be a little bit careful before I’m too critical,” he added.

Finding a balance between maintaining readiness and protecting service members’ health, he said, is “tough.”

“We don’t want to give adversaries an opening, and at the same time … if we don’t take care of our people then they will not be able to defend the country,” he said. “So, you have to do both.”

As of Friday, the Pentagon said 978 service members had tested positive for the virus; 34 have been hospitalized and one, a New Jersey Guardsman, has died.  The Navy had the most cases of any service at 322.

In addition to the outbreak on an aircraft carrier, there have also been reports of dozens infected at the Marine Corps’ Parris Island boot camp, which stopped receiving new recruits this week to prevent the virus’ spread.

The Pentagon has made changes to address the crisis, including a global 60-day stop movement order Esper issued in late March. But critics say Esper has acted too slowly and punted too many decisions.

“I think the Pentagon didn’t take this seriously as fast as they should have,” Rep. Jason CrowJason CrowHere are the lawmakers who have self-quarantined as a precaution Trump set to confront his impeachment foes Democratic impeachment manager shares quote from “Harry Potter’s” Dumbledore during trial MORE (D-Colo.) said in a phone interview with The Hill, referencing Esper’s answer to him at Feb. 26 House Armed Services Committee hearing that the Pentagon had not begun internal discussion on whether it needed more resources and funding for the coronavirus.

“You learn in military 101 training and leadership training that the first step of any kind of mission planning is you have to assess the threat,” said Crow, an Army Ranger veteran. “And as of Feb. 26, the fact that the Pentagon was not yet having those discussions tells me that they were getting at this problem too late. So here we are now in a crisis.”

While there is a balance between protecting service members’ health and continuing missions such as counterterrorism and preparing for so-called great power competition with Russia and China, Crow said, he is “not seeing” leadership strike that balance.

“I just don’t have confidence, sitting here right now today, that there is enough of a will at the top and that they’re taking this seriously in the right way to conduct the global planning that’s necessary to both address those threats but protect the force from this pandemic and do both of those at the same time,” he said.

The House and Senate Armed Services Committees were separately briefed by telephone this week on the Pentagon’s response to the virus. Officials on the calls included Thomas McCaffery, assistant secretary of Defense for health affairs; Ellen Lord, undersecretary of Defense for acquisition and sustainment; and Brig. Gen. Paul Friedrichs, Joint Staff surgeon.

After the Senate panel’s briefing, Chairman Jim InhofeJames (Jim) Mountain InhofeGOP senators urge Saudi Arabia to leave OPEC Overnight Defense: Stimulus bill has .5B for Pentagon | Money would be blocked from border wall | Esper orders 60-day freeze for overseas troop movements Senate panel switches to ‘paper hearings’ amid coronavirus pandemic MORE (R-Okla.) said military service leaders “need to set clear unit-level policies” to prevent the spread of the virus and “support unit leaders with the tools and resources needed to respond to and mitigate outbreaks as they occur.”

“While recognizing the need to continue critical military missions, the health and safety of our troops and their families must also be the top priority right now,” he said, adding that the Pentagon “shares that priority.”

He pointed to the situation on the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier as exemplifying the “numerous and unique challenges” the military is facing with the virus.

The Navy’s handling of the outbreak on the Roosevelt, where more than 137 sailors tested positive for the virus as of Friday, ignited a firestorm this week.

The commander of the ship, Capt. Brett Crozier, wrote a letter to Navy leaders warning that sailors will die if he did not get permission to evacuate all but 10 percent of the 4,800-person crew. The San Francisco Chronicle obtained a copy of the letter and published it Tuesday.

On Thursday, the Navy removed Crozier from command of the ship, with acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly announcing the decision in an extraordinary, hastily called news conference where he said Crozier failed to ensure the letter wasn’t leaked to the media.

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Crozier’s decision to send a copy of the letter to dozens of people in the Navy “demonstrated extremely poor judgment in the middle of a crisis because what it’s done is it’s created a firestorm,” Modly said.

But the firing has led lawmakers to demand answers.

“I asked in our DOD briefing this week: How many more Navy ships have COVID-19 infected sailors? There was no answer,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) tweeted Friday. “Possible virus hot spots at sea. Many lack adequate testing.”

Blumenthal, Sen. Chris Van HollenChristopher (Chris) Van HollenOvernight Defense: Lawmakers call for probe into aircraft carrier captain’s firing | Sailors cheer ousted commander | Hospital ship to ease screening process for patients Lawmakers call for investigation into aircraft carrier captain’s firing Lawmakers call for unemployment benefits for evacuated Peace Corps volunteers MORE (D-Md.) and 15 of their Democratic Senate colleagues asked the Pentagon’s inspector general Friday to open an investigation into Crozier’s firing and the outbreak on the Roosevelt, as did Democratic Reps. Ted LieuTed W. LieuTrump spars with reporter over Kushner’s ‘our stockpile’ remark Overnight Defense: Lawmakers call for probe into aircraft carrier captain’s firing | Sailors cheer ousted commander | Hospital ship to ease screening process for patients Lawmakers call for investigation into aircraft carrier captain’s firing MORE (Calif.) and Ruben GallegoRuben GallegoOvernight Defense: Lawmakers call for probe into aircraft carrier captain’s firing | Sailors cheer ousted commander | Hospital ship to ease screening process for patients Lawmakers call for investigation into aircraft carrier captain’s firing Lawmakers highlight flights back to DC for huge coronavirus vote MORE (Ariz.).

Sen. Jack ReedJohn (Jack) Francis ReedOvernight Defense: Stimulus bill has .5B for Pentagon | Money would be blocked from border wall | Esper orders 60-day freeze for overseas troop movements Senate panel switches to ‘paper hearings’ amid coronavirus pandemic Rand Paul’s coronavirus diagnosis sends shockwaves through Senate MORE (R.I.), the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the incident on the Roosevelt raises “critical questions” about the Navy’s response to the virus.

“Should the Navy be doing more?  What adjustments are they making?” Reed said in a statement. “The COVID-19 pandemic is urgent and evolving and it is incumbent upon the civilian and uniformed leadership to provide clear guidance not just to the committee, but to our forces and the American taxpayers.”

 

Happy Wednesday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Rebecca Kheel, and here’s your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.

 

THE TOPLINE: Nearly 3,000 sailors will be taken off the coronavirus-stricken USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier in the coming days, Navy leaders said Wednesday.

The announcement comes after the ship’s captain penned a letter pleading for help to end a coronavirus outbreak on board.

“We think that there was a communications breakdown potentially with the crew of the Theodore Roosevelt, but when we became aware yesterday morning of these concerns we made sure that we were meeting expectations,” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday said at a Pentagon briefing.

“I think the misunderstanding, perhaps, was the requirement at speed to get people off the ship,” he added later.

As of Wednesday, 93 sailors on the Roosevelt have tested positive for the virus, acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said. Of those, 86 had symptoms, while the rest were asymptomatic. About 24 percent of the crew has been tested, with 593 tests coming back negative, he added.

Modly said nearly 1,000 of the carrier’s 4,800 sailors have already been taken off the ship, which docked in Guam last week.

The Navy expects 2,700 will be off the ship “in the next couple of days,” he added.

Earlier on Wednesday, officials in Guam said sailors who test negative for the virus will be quarantined in hotels on the island.

 

Trump adds border, counter-drug missions to Pentagon’s coronavirus plate: Trump administration officials announced Wednesday that the U.S. military would send naval ships and aircraft to the Caribbean as part of an enhanced counternarcotics operation.

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President TrumpDonald John TrumpBiden campaign: Trump and former vice president will have phone call about coronavirus Esper: Military personnel could help treat coronavirus patients ‘if push comes to shove’ Schumer calls for military official to act as medical equipment czar MORE and other top officials discussed the operation at the top of a White House coronavirus briefing Wednesday evening. Trump said it was important not to let drug cartels “exploit the pandemic to threaten American lives.”

Defense Secretary Mark EsperMark EsperEsper: Military personnel could help treat coronavirus patients ‘if push comes to shove’ Overnight Defense: 2,700 sailors evacuating coronavirus-stricken carrier | Military to send ships, aircraft for counter-narcotics effort amid pandemic | Trump alleges Iranian plot for ‘sneak attack’ on US troops in Iraq Trump announces enhanced counternarcotics operation at coronavirus briefing MORE said that the Pentagon would deploy additional ships, aircraft and security forces to the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility as part of the operation.

“At a time when the nation and the Department of Defense are focused on protecting the American people from the spread from the coronavirus, we also remain vigilant to the many other threats the country faces,” Esper told reporters.

“Today, at the president’s direction, the Department of Defense in close cooperation with our interagency partners, began enhanced counternarcotics operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea,” he continued.

Earlier Wednesday, military officials also said they will send an additional 540 troops to the southern border “very soon” to aid federal border agents in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. Army North head Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson told reporters at the Pentagon that the increase is “specifically related to COVID-19.”

The military has been working with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border Protection to provide the extra troops “so as to be able to help them enforce their orders to secure against potential COVID positive migrants coming over the border,” U.S. Northern Command lead Air Force Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy said. 

“As we look at trying to seal off the external potential for COVID exposure to our U.S. citizens, there’s actually an increased demand signal, not a decreased demand signal for securing the southern border,” O’Shaughnessy added.

The United States has far more confirmed cases of coronavirus than Mexico at 206,000 cases compared to Mexico’s 1,215.

 

MEANWHILE … IN THE MIDDLE EAST: Trump on Wednesday warned Iran and its proxies against carrying out what he alleged is a planned “sneak attack” on U.S. troops in Iraq.

“Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!” Trump tweeted.

It was not immediately clear what information Trump was referring to and what the alleged sneak attack would entail.

The White House and National Security Council had no immediate comment when asked for elaboration on the tweet.

At a White House press briefing later, Trump said “we just have information that they were planning something, and it’s very good information.”

“It was led by Iran, not necessarily Iran, but by groups supported by Iran, but that to me is Iran. And we’re just saying, don’t do it. Don’t do it. It will be a very bad thing for them if they did it,” he said.

What Iran’s saying: Gen. Qassem Soleimani’s replacement as commander of Iran’s expeditionary Quds Force, Esmail Ghaani, visited Baghdad this week. A U.S. drone strike killed Soleimani in January. Iraqi officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday the visit was meant to unify Iraq’s divided political leaders.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry also railed Wednesday against the U.S. deployment of the Patriot air defense system to Iraq, which the U.S. military did to protect against any future Iranian missile strikes.

In a statement, the ministry warned that such “warmongering measures amid the outbreak of coronavirus … would create tensions, and could steer the regional situation towards instability and catastrophic conditions.”

 

ON TAP FOR TOMORROW

New America will host an online event to release a report on U.S. hostage and detainee policy at 12:15 p.m. https://bit.ly/2UB2UPu

 

ICYMI

— The Hill: Thousands of workers furloughed on US bases in South Korea after deal falls through

— The Hill: Coast Guard directs cruise ships with infected passengers to stay offshore ‘indefinitely’

— Task and Purpose: Listen to Trump, Esper, and Milley speak straight to troops and their families about COVID-19

— Stars and Stripes: Air Force Academy moves up graduation after cadet deaths

— Bloomberg: Pentagon seeking 100,000 body bags for civilians in crisis

Sen. Mark WarnerMark Robert WarnerTrump fires intelligence community inspector general who flagged Ukraine whistleblower complaint Hillicon Valley: Thousands of Zoom recordings exposed online | Google shares location data to counter virus | Dem senator pushes jobless benefits for gig workers | Twitter takes down 20,000 fake accounts Democrat presses Trump administration on jobless benefits for gig workers MORE (D-Va.) is urging the Department of Labor to issue guidance for states scrambling to give gig workers and people who are self-employed access to unemployment benefits.

“The CARES Act directs states to stand up a new program, the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) Program, to disburse benefits to workers who would normally not be eligible for unemployment assistance, such as gig workers or freelancers,” Warner wrote to Labor Secretary Eugene ScaliaEugene ScaliaHillicon Valley: Thousands of Zoom recordings exposed online | Google shares location data to counter virus | Dem senator pushes jobless benefits for gig workers | Twitter takes down 20,000 fake accounts Democrat presses Trump administration on jobless benefits for gig workers Trump administration issues guidance scaling back paid leave requirement for small business employees MORE in a letter Friday.

“Unfortunately, we are already hearing reports from unemployment officials from around the country that it will likely take weeks to stand up a new program and disburse benefits to these newly eligible workers. In the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, with unemployment claims overwhelming state systems, there is no time to waste.”

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The $2 trillion coronavirus relief package, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act signed by President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump fires intelligence community inspector general who flagged Ukraine whistleblower complaint Trump organization has laid off over 1000 employees due to pandemic: report Trump invokes Defense Production Act to prevent export of surgical masks, gloves MORE last week, gives those workers access to unemployment benefits. But states have struggled to make those benefits available quickly, given a historic surge in workers seeking unemployment benefits as the coronavirus pandemic batters the economy.

The Department of Labor issued initial guidance on the CARES Act late Thursday, but Warner said it must streamline the PUA program, require states to allow applicants to submit electronic documents and find innovative ways to speed up relief.

“While I appreciate the initial round of guidance that was released yesterday, the Department of Labor should have already issued more comprehensive guidance to states this week,” he wrote.

The spread of the coronavirus has highlighted the precarious situation of American gig and self-employed workers who are not guaranteed access to traditional unemployment benefits or health coverage.

Several workers in contractor-heavy industries have engaged in strikes to demand better protections from their employers.

President Trump announced on Friday that he would be nominating Justin Walker, a federal judge in Kentucky and a protégé of Supreme Court Justice Brett KavanaughBrett Michael KavanaughTrump nominates former Kavanaugh clerk for influential appeals court Coronavirus isn’t the only reason Congress should spend less time in DC Progressives urge Democrats to hear from federal judge deeply critical of Roberts, conservatives MORE, to a seat on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, considered the second most important court in the country.

Walker, 37, was confirmed for a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky just five months ago.

He was a controversial nominee for the district court seat and was approved by committee and confirmed on the Senate floor in party-line votes. Walker was rated “not qualified” by the American Bar Association (ABA) for his lack of trial experience, having apparently never tried a case in court.

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“In addition, based on review of his biographical information and conversations with Mr. Walker, it was challenging to determine how much of his ten years since graduation from law school has been spent in the practice of law,” the ABA said in a letter to the Senate last year. “Even crediting the time spent in judicial clerkships, Mr. Walker’s practice experience is less than his 10 years since graduation and significantly less than the 12 years of legal practice experience stated in our criteria.”

After graduating from Harvard Law School, Walker clerked for Kavanaugh, then a D.C. Circuit judge, and former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. He went on to work at two private law firms and teach part-time at the University of Louisville law school.

Before attending law school, Walker served as a speechwriter to former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

He’ll be replacing Judge Thomas Griffith, a George W. Bush appointee, who recently announced that he’d be retiring from the D.C. Circuit in August.

The coveted D.C. Circuit seat comes with a lifetime appointment and is occasionally a proving ground for future Supreme Court justices.

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Walker is a favorite of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellOvernight Health Care: CDC recommends face coverings in public | Resistance to social distancing sparks new worries | Controversy over change of national stockpile definition | McConnell signals fourth coronavirus bill On The Money: Economy sheds 701K jobs in March | Why unemployment checks could take weeks | Confusion surrounds 9B in small-business loans 13 things to know for today about coronavirus MORE (R-Ky.), who last month joined Kavanaugh in praising the young judge at an oath ceremony in Kentucky.

“Judge Walker is a brilliant and fair jurist who reveres the Constitution and our nation’s founding principles,” McConnell said in a statement. “He understands the crucial but limited role that a judge must play in our constitutional order. I have known my fellow Kentuckian for a long time. The entire country will benefit from having this brilliant, principled, and fair-minded legal expert on this consequential bench.”

The New York Times reported last month that McConnell had been urging veteran senior judges around the country to retire this year to ensure that Republicans could fill their seats with ideological allies ahead of an election cycle fraught with uncertainty.

Griffith announced his retirement shortly after writing an opinion that ruled the House could not subpoena former White House counsel Don McGahn in a decision that would have rendered congressional subpoenas legally unenforceable.

The D.C. Circuit vacated the decision and will be rehearing the case later this month.

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Updated at 12:50 p.m.

President TrumpDonald John TrumpBiden campaign: Trump and former vice president will have phone call about coronavirus Esper: Military personnel could help treat coronavirus patients ‘if push comes to shove’ Schumer calls for military official to act as medical equipment czar MORE’s reelection campaign tweeted out manipulated audio to make it sound like former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenBiden campaign: Trump and former vice president will have phone call about coronavirus Overnight Health Care: Trump resists pressure for nationwide stay-at-home order | Trump open to speaking to Biden about virus response | Fauci gets security detail | Outbreak creates emergency in nursing homes 16 things to know today about coronavirus outbreak MORE called the coronavirus a “hoax” in an effort to draw attention to what it views as Twitter’s double standard in policing political speech.

The new Trump campaign video is styled after an ad released by the Democratic super PAC Priorities USA, which featured misleading audio of Trump describing the coronavirus as a “hoax.”

The president’s campaign has flagged multiple Democratic videos for Twitter in which he is heard calling the coronavirus a “hoax,” arguing that the content runs afoul of the social media giant’s manipulated media guidelines. Twitter has declined to sanction the Democratic ads.

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In the Trump campaign ad released Thursday, Biden can be heard saying: “The coronavirus is a hoax.”

Biden never called the coronavirus a “hoax.” The audio is deceptively spliced together from two different times that Biden spoke.

The Trump campaign is making the case that Democrats also deceptively edited audio to make it sound like Trump called the coronavirus a “hoax.”

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The campaign released the new Biden audio to see if Twitter would enforce its manipulated media standards on both sides, or only on the Trump campaign.

“Twitter has so far effectively instituted a ‘Biden protection rule,’ refusing to apply their manipulated media label to video and audio of President Trump that every independent fact checker says is false,” a Trump campaign official said. “This tweet forces the issue and makes Twitter decide. It can enforce its arbitrary rules fairly and equally, or it can have its policy exposed as totally ineffective or a partisan sham. It’s their move.”

Last week, the Trump campaign flagged new content on Twitter that it said had been deceptively edited to make it seem like the president had called the coronavirus a “hoax.”

Several videos promoted by Democrats, including the Priorities USA ad, have been viewed millions of times, and feature audio of Trump saying: “The coronavirus, this is their new hoax.”

Fact checkers at The Washington Post, Snopes, PolitiFact and FacCheck.org have determined that it is false to claim that Trump called the virus a “hoax.” Rather, he used the term while talking about Democratic efforts to politicize the virus.

Trump’s full quote was: “Coronavirus. They’re politicizing it. We did one of the great jobs, you say, ‘How’s President Trump doing?’, ‘Oh, nothing, nothing.’ They have no clue, they don’t have any clue … And this is their new hoax. But you know we did something that’s been pretty amazing.”

The Trump campaign has threatened legal action against the television stations running the Priorities USA ad.

And it sent requests to Twitter to review the ad under its manipulated media guidelines.

Twitter responded by saying that the ads did not violate their manipulated media guidelines.

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So far, Twitter has only used the manipulated media tag once, to put a warning on a Trump campaign video.

The sanctioned video features footage of Biden saying: “We can only reelect Donald Trump.”

The social media company determined that the Trump campaign video did not include Biden’s full remarks and therefore had been taken out of context.

In a full clip of the moment, Biden says, “We can only reelect Donald Trump if in fact we get engaged in this circular firing squad here. It’s gotta be a positive campaign.”

Google under investigation

European Commission launches probe into Google’s search business.

The European Commission today announced that it is opening an antitrust investigation into allegations that Google has abused its dominant position in the online search market.

The investigation follows complaints by search providers about unfavourable treatment of their services in Google’s unpaid and sponsored search results as well as an alleged preferential placement of Google’s own services.

Google’s internet search engine provides for two types of results: some are unpaid, and others – third-party advertisements shown at the top and at the right-hand side of Google’s search results page – are paid search results or sponsored links.

The Commission said it will investigate whether Google has abused its dominant market position in what are known as vertical search services. It is alleged to lower the ranking of unpaid search results of competing services that specialise in providing content, such as price comparisons. It will also investigate whether Google gave preferential placement to the results of its own vertical search services in order to shut out competing services.

In addition, the Commission will examine allegations that Google lowered the ‘quality score’ for sponsored links of competing vertical search services. The quality score influences the likelihood of an advertisement being displayed by Google and its ranking.

The Commission’s probe will also focus on allegations that Google imposes exclusivity obligations on advertising partners, preventing them from placing certain types of competing ads on their websites, as well as on computer and software vendors. The alleged aim is to shut out competing search tools.

Other areas of investigation are suspected restrictions on the portability of online advertising campaign data to competing online advertising platforms.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he was “appalled” over a letter from President TrumpDonald John TrumpMilitary personnel to handle coronavirus patients at facilities in NYC, New Orleans and Dallas Navy hospital ship USNS Comfort has total of 20 patients: report Fauci says that all states should have stay-at-home orders MORE, in which the president criticized the Democratic leader as a “bad” senator and vulnerable to a primary challenge from the left. 

 

Trump released the letter to Schumer after the New York senator sent his own letter asking the president to name a military official as a czar to oversee production and disbursement of medical equipment and invoke the Defense Production Act.  

 

“I spoke to the president late this afternoon and explained it and the result is this letter. So I’m just appalled. You know I say to the president just stop the pettiness. People are dying and so, President Trump, we need leadership. We need to get the job done. Stop the pettiness,” Schumer told MSNBC’s Chris Hayes on Thursday night. 

 

“I sent the letter with the best of intentions,” Schumer added. 

 

Schumer and Trump spoke twice by phone this afternoon, according to the Democratic senator’s office. 

 

After Schumer explained what actions he was requesting Trump take, the president, according to Schumer’s office, “said he was already in the process of sending a ‘very nasty letter’ to Sen. Schumer, but he would try to stop it from going out and would apologize to Sen. Schumer if he didn’t stop it in time.”

 

The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about the details of the phone call between Trump and Schumer. 

 

The two New Yorkers have revived their running war of words amid the coronavirus crisis, which has killed 5,926 Americans as of Thursday evening according to Johns Hopkins University. 

 

Schumer, during a TV hit on Wednesday night and again in a letter Thursday, urged the president to put a military official in charge of overseeing the coronavirus supplies effort amid reports from states and hospitals that they are under-equipped for the growing number of cases.

 

“The existing federal leadership void has left America with an ugly spectacle in which States and cities are literally fending for themselves, often in conflict and competition with each other, when trying to procure precious medical supplies and equipment,” Schumer wrote. 

 

Schumer’s office noted that in his most recent phone call with Trump, Schumer explained how he had spoken with Peter Navarro, who has been tapped to enforce the DPA, “but felt that person was not up to the job.” He also told Trump that he was “concerned” about Rear Adm. John Polowczyk, who is leading FEMA’s supply chain task force.

 

Trump lashed out at Schumer in his letter, accusing him of using “incorrect sound bites” when talking about the administration’s efforts. 

 

“If you spent less time on your ridiculous impeachment hoax, which went haplessly on forever and ended up going nowhere (except increasing my poll numbers) and instead focused on helping the people of New York, then New York would not have been so completely unprepared for the ‘invisible enemy.’ No wonder AOC and others are thinking about running against you in the primary. If they did, they would likely win,” Trump wrote.

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Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellOvernight Health Care: CDC recommends face coverings in public | Resistance to social distancing sparks new worries | Controversy over change of national stockpile definition | McConnell signals fourth coronavirus bill On The Money: Economy sheds 701K jobs in March | Why unemployment checks could take weeks | Confusion surrounds 9B in small-business loans 13 things to know for today about coronavirus MORE (R-Ky.) said Friday that there will be a fourth coronavirus bill and that health care should be a top priority as lawmakers draft the legislation.

McConnell, in an interview with The Associated Press, said that “there will be a next measure.”

“[It] should be more a targeted response to what we got wrong and what we didn’t do enough for — and at the top of the list there would have to be the health care part of it,” he said.

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The comments from the GOP leader, who remains in Washington, D.C., during the Senate’s three-week break, are the firmest he has offered yet about the possibility for additional legislation.

Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiTrump says he opposes mail-in voting for November On The Money: Economy sheds 701K jobs in March | Why unemployment checks could take weeks | Confusion surrounds 9B in small-business loans The bipartisan neutering of the Congressional Budget Office MORE (D-Calif.) and House Democrats have held near-daily conference calls with reporters as they’ve raced to outline their ideas for another coronavirus package that would include infrastructure, free coronavirus treatment and other issues like improved worker protections and expanded family and sick leave.

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McConnell acknowledged that he and Pelosi have a “little different point of view” on the timing of the next coronavirus bill, and that he is still “not in favor of rushing” additional legislation.

The GOP leader indicated in a separate tweet that Senate Republicans are focused, for now, on implementing the $2.2 trillion package passed by Congress late last week, which includes direct cash assistance for individuals and hundreds of billions for small businesses and hard-hit industries like airlines.

“Senate Republicans are closely tracking the implementation of our historic CARES Act as the Administration puts it into effect for the American people. We are committed to supporting American workers, families, and small businesses as our nation confronts this historic emergency,” he tweeted.

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McConnell’s movement toward a fourth bill comes as Pelosi appeared to scale back her ambitions for the next package, saying that things like improvements to drinking water systems and expanded access to broadband may have to wait.

Pelosi told CNBC that the next bill should focus on more funding for direct payments to individuals, unemployment insurance, small-business loans and protective equipment for doctors and other medical professionals.

“Right now, I think that we have a good model. It was bipartisan, it was signed by the president. But it’s not enough,” Pelosi told CNBC host Jim Cramer.

She added that some components of her infrastructure proposal may not make the cut.

“While I’m very much in favor of doing some things we need to do to meet the needs — clean water, more broadband, the rest of that — that may have to be for a bill beyond this,” Pelosi said.

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Countless people were astounded that someone would be so brazen as to steal a donation box from an Annapolis liquor store that was full of cash to benefit the homeless animals at the Anne Arundel County Animal Control and Shelter. Alex Seidleck, a 16-year-old student at Indian Creek Upper School in Crownsville, couldn’t believe what he read about the incident on Patch. He just had to do something.

“It really bothered me that someone could be so cruel and selfish that they would steal from animals who have no home, no family and basically nothing at all,” Seidleck told Patch.

He recalled something his parents always said, “There are more good people in this world than there are bad,” but this time, that positive outlook just didn’t resonate with Seidleck.

“The next day I mentioned the article to my Mom, and she asked me what I thought I should do since she could tell I was really frustrated and angered by it. I told her I wished I had the money so I could pay it back myself and that was what gave me the idea of trying to start a fundraiser. I have never done anything like this before, so I did not know if it would work,” he said.

Seidleck first approached local businesses about his idea, but because he wasn’t representing a business or a sports team, he was told he couldn’t set up donation boxes. Undeterred, the teenager created a GoFundMe page where he pleaded with people to consider helping out the animals.

“If you are as outraged as I am to hear that someone in our community would stoop so low to steal from an organization that takes care of thousands of homeless animals and whose source of income is based primarily from donations from the GOOD PEOPLE in this world, please make whatever donation you can to help me right this wrong,” he wrote on the GoFundMe site.

At first, family and friends donated to Seidleck’s cause, along with teammates from his baseball teams. He was shocked when complete strangers offered to pitch in and help, which restored his faith in people.

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“In a way, I think this fundraiser helped me as much as it helped the animals at the shelter because it made me realize that there really are more good people in the world than bad. I met my $500 goal in about a month and still had a few donations coming in,” he told Patch.

Recently, on Seidleck’s grandmother’s birthday, they met Lisa Ingram, president of the Friends of Anne Arundel County Animal Care and Control, and presented her with the $650 he had raised.

“It made me feel good to know that the shelter animals would be getting some of the things they really needed, despite that one person who tried to take it away from them,” he said.

Michelle Seidleck couldn’t believe her son sought to replace the stolen money and ended up surpassing his original goal.

“One of the many things that makes me so proud of Alex is that he has had a compassionate heart and a huge soft spot for all animals, ever since he was little. Watching him take the initiative to try and help fix a situation that he considered to be very wrong, gave me the opportunity to see another side of him,” his mother said.

While Alex is usually quiet an unlikely to reach out to to people for help, it was different with the fundraiser, she said.

“He contacted friends and family through social media and text messages, and also engaged the community in an effort to raise as much as he could to help replace the stolen funds,” Michelle Seidleck said. His Dad and I are both very proud of him for spearheading this charitable fundraiser and for working so hard to reach, and even exceed, the goal he set for himself and for the animals.”

Seidleck’s grandmother and mom have loved animals all their lives and they share that passion with him. They’ve raised dogs, cats, lizards, guinea pigs, frogs, fish and hermit crabs. Their beloved family dog Cosmo, who was diabetic, blind and deaf, died earlier this year, but the family is finally ready to bring a new dog into their lives and plans to adopt one from the very shelter Alex Seidleck just helped, he said.

“I am glad we are going to adopt a rescue dog because when I was at the shelter, just seeing all of the animals, their sad eyes and the looks on their faces, it made me realize that there are so many homeless animals out there that need help and homes, even more than I had ever thought,” he said.

GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.