Coronavirus cases rise; average age drops significantly

BY JACK CROWE

June 29, 2020

CORONAVIRUS CASES ARE ON THE RISE in 36 states and have begun spiking dramatically in the South and the West in particular. In Florida — one of twelve states that rolled back its reopening of bars and restaurants last week — there were 9,585 new cases reported on Saturday, a single-day record that was followed by 8,530 cases on Sunday.

Florida governor Ron De Santis has attributed the state's spike to a "test dump," but Tom Frieden, former head of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, says otherwise.

"As a doctor, a scientist, an epidemiologist, I can tell you with 100 percent certainty that in most states where you're seeing an increase, it is a real increase. It is not more tests; it is more spread of the virus," Frieden told Fox News on Sunday.

The average age of those infected with COVID has dropped significantly as the virus found a foothold among revelers who packed bars and restaurants — and, in some cases, took to the streets to protest — just as their states were emerging from months of lockdown.

In Minnesota, where the George Floyd protests began, the percentage of cases attributed to people in their twenties has skyrocketed from around 20 percent in May to nearly 40 percent at present. In Florida, the median age for those infected stood in the 60s in March but has now dropped to the early 30s. The same trend has emerged in California, prompting Governor Gavin Newsom to order the closure of bars in certain populous counties.

Part of the youth surge can undoubtedly be traced to the local nightlife, and indeed some case clusters have been linked to specific bars — but one also has to wonder whether thousands of people packing the streets every night for weeks had an effect. If it did, we can expect to see cases surge among the young people of New York and Chicago, who took to the streets by the thousands over the weekend to demonstrate for gay rights.

Public-health officials have been reluctant to pin the youth surge on protesters, and quick to point out that gathering outside is relatively safer than gathering indoors. But this reluctance to sully the image of protests for causes they may sympathize with is constraining our understanding of how the virus is behaving. In New York, testing sites have been instructed not to ask people whether they've attended protests and many testing sites in San Francisco are also refusing to ask the question.

You would think people entrusted with the health of the public would want to know everything they possibly could about a virus that has killed more than 100,000 Americans — but you would be wrong.

Worldwide COVID Deaths Pass 500,000

The coronavirus pandemic passed 500,000 confirmed deaths and 10 million confirmed cases worldwide as new infections continued to surge in some U.S. states.

Nationwide, cases passed 2.5 million over the weekend as California, Florida, and Texas all announced updates to their phased reopenings in an attempt to slow the spread.

With the new cases predominantly affecting younger Americans, governors Gavin Newsom of California, Ron DeSantis of Florida, and Greg Abbott of Texas all rolled back reopenings of bars. Appearing with Abbott on Sunday, Vice President Mike Pence commended him for taking action, admitting that "about two weeks ago something changed."

Rise in Shootings Continues in NYC amid Unrest

A rise in New York City gun violence shows no signs of abating, with at least 25 shootings occurring over the weekend.

The victims include a 23-year-old man and 39-year-old woman who were shot in broad daylight in Brooklyn on Saturday, both of whom were pronounced dead at the scene. A 17-year-old Bronx resident died Sunday night after being shot in the neck.

At least 500 people have been shot in the city since the start of 2020, a 42 percent uptick from the same period of 2019. From Sunday through Saturday last week there were 59 shootings, while the same week in 2019 saw 26 shootings. (NBC)

Trump Denies Russia-Taliban Bounty Reports: 'Possibly Another Fabricated Russia Hoax'

President Trump responded Sunday night to multiple reports that Russia had paid Taliban fighters to kill American troops in Afghanistan, writing on Twitter that U.S. intelligence "did not find this info credible" and that he was never briefed on the matter.

"Intel just reported to me that they did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me or @VP. Possibly another fabricated Russia Hoax, maybe by the Fake News @nytimesbooks, wanting to make Republicans look bad!!!" Trump tweeted Sunday night.

The New York Times, which broke the story citing anonymous officials, said the intelligence "was briefed" to Trump and discussed by the National Security Council in March, but a formal response was never announced. (NYT)

Mississippi Becomes Last State to Remove Confederate Emblem from Flag

The Mississippi state legislature voted on Sunday to remove the emblem of the Confederacy from the state flag.

State residents had previously been resistant to changing the flag, however polling from the state's Chamber of Commerce indicated that 55 percent of residents now supported removing the Confederate symbol.

"In the nearly 20 years we have held the position of changing the state flag, we have never seen voters so much in favor of change," Scott Waller, president of the Mississippi Economic Council, said on Thursday. "These recent polling numbers show what people believe, and that the time has come for us to have a new flag that serves as a unifying symbol for our entire state." (Mississippi Today)

Minneapolis Spends Thousands on Private Security for City Councilmen amid Calls to 'Defund' the Police

Minneapolis has spent over $63,000 to provide private security for members of its city council, which has been outspoken in calls to defund the police department following the death of George Floyd.

Andrea Jenkins (Ward 8), Phillipe Cunningham (Ward 4), and Alondra Cano (Ward 9) are being provided details that cost $4,500 a day, a city spokesperson confirmed to local outlet FOX9.

While Cano did not return a request for comment, Cunningham said he was not "comfortable publicly discussing the death threats against me," but said the security was temporary. Jenkins — an African American man who identifies as a woman — told FOX9 that the security was over concern for "the large number of white nationalist(s) in our city and other threatening communications I've been receiving." (FOX)