Donald Trump (image public domain/White House)Gallup Polling reports Donald Trump’s approval rating, which had risen in the aftermath of his impeachment acquittal, has dipped 5 points to 44 percent as he and his administration have sent conflicting messages about the severity of the COVID-19 threat.
The latest reading is from Gallup’s March 2-13 poll, which was conducted as the novel coronavirus spread throughout the U.S., eventually leading to international travel restrictions, the cancellation of major U.S. events and widespread school closures.
The magnitude of the COVID-19 crisis in the U.S. quickly evolved over the poll’s field period, and Americans’ (particularly Democrats’ and independents’) concern about it increased sharply. The Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded historic declines in the past two weeks.
The organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest have announced this year’s edition has been canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 threat. In a post to Instagram, the statement read, in part:
It is with deep regret that we have to announce the cancellation of the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam.
Over the past few weeks we have explored many alternative options to allow the Eurovision Song Contest to go ahead.
However, the uncertainty created by the spread of COVID-19 throughout Europe – and the restrictions put in place by the governments of the participating broadcasters and the Dutch authorities – means the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has taken the difficult decision that it is impossible to continue with the live event as planned.
We are very proud that the Eurovision Song Contest has united audiences every year, without interruption, for the past 64 years and we, like the millions of fans around the world, are extremely saddened that it cannot take place in May.
This is the first time since the song contest began in 1956 the event been canceled. From ABBA’s win in 1974 to transgender singer Dana International of Israel in 1998 to Austrian drag queen Conchita Wurst’s victory in 2014, the over-the-top performances and often queer-centric sensibility of the competition has made the annual event a highly-anticipated international television spectacle.
The Washington Post illustrates how Fox News hosts initially denounced any kind of serious measures to be taken against the coronavirus as they stood lockstep with Donald Trump’s tamping down of the threat.
For weeks, some of Fox News’s most popular hosts downplayed the threat of the coronavirus, characterizing it as a conspiracy by media organizations and Democrats to undermine President Trump.
Fox News personalities such as Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham accused the news media of whipping up “mass hysteria” and being “panic pushers.” Fox Business host Trish Regan called the alleged media-Democratic alliance “yet another attempt to impeach the president.”
But that was then.
With Trump’s declaration on Friday that the virus constitutes a national emergency, the tone on Fox News has quickly shifted.
In the video, each of the political personalities quickly flip-flops when the reality of the situation became apparent, even to Trump. You can read more details about each hypocritical u-turn by the Fox News folks here.
Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) announced a statewide closure of all “nonessential” businesses for 30 days amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Speaking at a press conference in Carson City, Sisolak said the closure would apply to all casinos, restaurants, bars and other nonessential businesses. The move followed the statewide closing of K-12 schools that the governor ordered on Sunday.
“Every social contact increases your threat of exposure. The bigger the group, the higher the risk,” said Sisolak.
Fifty-five coronavirus cases have been reported thus far in Nevada. One person has died in the state.
Today, I took the necessary steps to date to try to mitigate this pandemic & keep our community safe. Medical experts have advised that the most effective course of action is to direct all Nevadans to stay home & for all nonessential businesses to close to the public for 30 days.
L-R Alberto Gestoso, Alex Lebron Torrent With much of the world staying at home and/or practicing ‘social distancing,’ folks are finding ways to not only remain upbeat but in touch with their communities. A viral video from Spain (over 9.3 million views on Facebook in just two days) demonstrates the power music has to bring people together. Facebook user Pedrito Miguel shared the clip featuring out musician Alberto Gestoso playing the Céline Dion hit, “My Heart Will Go On,” on his piano out on his balcony in the Sagrada Familia neighborhood of Barcelona this past Sunday. As he plays for his neighbors, saxophone player Alexander Lebron Torrent joins in for the impromptu concert.
In the video, you can see Gestoso’s neighbors leaning on their balconies taking in the open-air serenade. “This made me cry with emotion,” wrote Miguel. “The video is from Barcelona, which is in Quarantine like the rest of Spain. Courage and strength to all.” Gestoso shared a post on his Instagram regarding the afternoon’s musical moment writing, “Thanks to all of you who are staying at home for the good of all,” He also encouraged others “who are going through everything” to think of others because “this is everyone’s responsibility.” The original video appears to have been recorded by his boyfriend, Roman Santana, who shared the clip on his Instagram which has been viewed over 1.4 million times. Saxophonist Alex Lebron Torrent shared the moment from his perspective as well.
If you’ve been to Barcelona (easily one of my favorite cities in Europe), you know exactly where this is with the world-famous Basilica de la Sagrada Familia in the background. Check out a few posts from the two musician’s Instagram accounts. Definitely worth perusing.
Fox News personality Mark Steyn (screen capture) While guest-hosting The Rush Limbaugh Show today, Fox News personality Mark Steyn mocked San Francisco for being one of the first cities to lockdown during the ongoing coronavirus threat saying it’s because “it’s a big gay town” with “all the compromised immune systems.” Transcript via MediaMatters:
“San Francisco has just ordered everyone to shelter in place, just to say, ‘Stay in your apartment. Don’t leave your apartment unless you need to go out to a grocery store or to a pharmacy or to a doctor’s.’
“Why are they doing that? Why is San Francisco the first to do that? Because they’ve got all the gay guys there.
“It’s a big gay town, San Francisco, and they’re the ones with all the compromised immune systems from all the protease inhibitors and all the other stuff. And they don’t want all the gays dropping dead on the San Francisco mayor’s watch. So that’s why they’ve got all that sheltering in place there.
“And even if it dropped, they all dropped dead on the San Francisco mayor’s watch, if there was a big gay apocalypse, you know, the way this thing is going now, it would be Trump who would get blamed for it anyway.
“He’d be — it would be his homophobia that would have struck down all these people in San Francisco. So that’s why they’ve all been ordered to stay home. And it’s not easy staying home.”
(image via Pexels) It’s amazing what can happen when a president ACTS like a president. From CNBC:
Stocks surged Tuesday — rebounding from their worst day in more than three decades — as Wall Street cheered White House plans that could inject $1 trillion into the U.S. economy to cushion the blow of the coronavirus.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 1,048.79 points higher, or 5.2%, at 21,237.31. It briefly dipped below 20,000 for the first time since February 2017 before rebounding. The S&P 500 was up 6% at 2,529.19 while the Nasdaq Composite gained 6.2% to end the day at 7,334.78.
The Trump administration is weighing a fiscal stimulus package of more than $1 trillion that includes direct payments to Americans, according to a source familiar with the matter. Earlier, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters the government is considering directly sending checks to Americans in the next two weeks. “Americans need cash now,” he said.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that the administration is talking to Congress about sending checks to Americans over the next two weeks to cushion the economic blow of the pandemic. “The president has instructed me we have to do this now,” he said at a briefing.
It was a shift in priority for the administration, which has been advocating a payroll tax cut, and it came as the coronavirus began to grind large swaths of the economy to a halt, cost an increasing number of people their jobs and continued to send the markets reeling.
Mr. Mnuchin said that the Trump administration favors making direct payments quickly, noting that the effects of a payroll tax cut would take months to reach people.
Mnuchin didn’t mention a specific dollar amount in regard to direct payments. He did suggest there should be an income cut-off on the cash payments and that households with high-income might not be eligible.
“I think it’s clear we don’t need to send people who make a million dollars a year checks,” Mnuchin said.
Nick Clearly of The SkivviesGuest post by Lawrence Pfeil Jr. When the going gets tough, the tough get creative. With the news, updates, and outlooks about the coronavirus pandemic changing by the hour in ways unimaginable only a week ago, we need artists to bring us together while we are forced into isolation. And that’s what Nick Cearley, the musical mastermind behind the wildly popular ‘undie rock’ duo, The Skivvies, has done with his latest inspiring song makeover, “Social Distance.” The Skivvies have become one of the hottest tickets in New York City cabaret. The Skivvies perform stripped-down arrangements of eclectic covers and eccentric originals. Not only is the music stripped down – cello, ukulele, glockenspiel, melodica – but The Skivvies literally strip down to their underwear to perform. And the critics cheered!
“…Distinctive musical style, highly original…smart…sophisticated…ingenious…” – Wall Street Journal
“…a hot musical comedy duo specializing in unexpected arrangements, incongruous mashups and, of course,highly toned displays of skin.” – The New York Times
And it’s not just the critics who’ve fallen in love with The Skivvies. The group welcomes guest appearances by stars from the worlds of Broadway, TV, and the recording studio including Jeremy Jordan, Nick Adams, Nick Lachey, Laura Benanti, Tituss Burgess and more – all singing in their underwear. Clad in only his red undies with a firm grip on his ukulele (no, that’s not a euphemism) and some divine inspiration (yes, that is a euphemism as in the Divine Miss M), Nick transforms Bette Midler’s 1991 Grammy Award-winning hit, “From a Distance” into a new 2020 song of hope.
Nick Cearley will be performing a live living room concert today, March 17 at 4PM Eastern on his Facebook page here. Check The Skivviesofficial website for information regarding live performances here. Lawrence Pfeil, Jr., is a freelance writer/playwright who has reviewed film and theatre, both on and off-Broadway, for media outlets including The Randy Report, the New York Blade, and Edge Publications.
