ACROSS AMERICA — Some states in the Midwest that had not previously seen high coronavirus infection numbers are now reporting surges in case counts. Missouri, Montana and Oklahoma are among the states seeing the largest percentages of case surges over the past week, according to data analyzed by the Washington Post.
This comes as only “slight progress” has been made on a second coronavirus relief bill, an Associated Press report indicates. But a long way remains as the impasse continues over the extension of federal unemployment aid. Democrats are eyeing a continuation of the $600-per-week benefit for those who are out of work as a result of the virus, while Republicans have proposed lowering the weekly amount to $200.
The progress was reported Monday, which turned out to be a dark day on the economic front. Reports came in of a number of big name companies, including Lord & Taylor, Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank, filing for bankruptcy related to the coronavirus pandemic.
But President Donald Trump has spoken favorably of the economy in recent days and has repeatedly predicted “a record year” coming in 2021. On Monday, he accused Democrats of being only focused on getting “bailout money” for states run by Democrats, according to a New York Times report.
In an email to his followers, the president again wrote that “patriots wear face masks.”
“I don’t love wearing them either,” he wrote. “Masks may be good, they may be just okay, or they may be great.”
“They can possibly help us get back to our American way of life that so many of us rightfully cherished before we were so terribly impacted by the China Virus. My feeling is, we have nothing to lose, and possibly everything to gain, including the next chapter to our country and to keep things open whether it be schools or businesses.”
In an interview with Axios’ Jonathan Swan, Trump said last week the virus is “under control.”
“They are dying, that’s true. And you have — it is what it is,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean we aren’t doing everything we can. It’s under control as much as you can control it. This is a horrible plague.”
To date, more than 155,500 people in the United States have died of COVID-19, according to the tally by Johns Hopkins University. More than 4.7 million cases have been reported in the U.S.
PEABODY,PATCH
