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 Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily BeastYou're going to hear the phrase "grim milestone" a lot in the coming weeks. The pandemic that was "totally under control," according to Donald Trump, will have passed 13,000 deaths by the time you read this, with no end in sight.
One grim milestone is how the White House's propaganda wing, otherwise known as Fox News, is already spinning the deaths of thousands into a win for their guy, and America.
Messaging the president's woeful mishandling of the pandemic has been a wild ride for Trump's defenders, a journey that at times has tested even their patience for presidential bullshit and ability to suspend disbelief. The epic propaganda cycle started with the president's defenders repeating and amplifying his message that the coronavirus was "just the flu" and a political hoax. Then they moved on to how Trump had saved us all with his very leaky China ban, and now they've been talking about how Democrats are exaggerating how bad it is, and—I know it sounds like a contradiction but who are you gonna believe, your great leader or your own eyes?—also that we've won a crushing victory against "the invisible enemy."
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 Kevin Lamarque/ReutersIt's hard to overstate just how much life for working people in the United States has changed since the novel coronavirus first reared its ugly head in January. Many millions have lost their jobs, and millions more are teetering on the brink. But now that stay-at-home orders have been issued widely, and life in most major cities has ground to a halt, those lucky enough to have the option to stay home—or to have one at all—find some of their few remaining interactions with strangers come at the grocery store.
They may not get as much attention as health-care professionals or striking warehouse workers right now, but grocery store workers have been—and still are—on the front lines of this crisis. And as has become more and more apparent in recent days, just like their counterparts in hot zones like Italy before them, they are in mortal danger.
On Monday, a Trader Joe's worker in Scarsdale, New York, died from COVID-19, marking the nationwide grocery chain's first casualty. Following the worker's death, the Scarsdale location was shuttered until Thursday. The company has suggested the worker's "underlying health conditions" helped lead to their demise, and it is not clear if the worker contracted the illness on the job—nor whether other employees at the same store may have become sick.
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 Illustration by The Daily Beast/Getty/InstagramIn the midst of the global coronavirus pandemic, there has been much discussion of the role of celebrity, from the obtuseness of the rich and famous to the pointed (and fairly narrow) ways in which they can be useful, tuning into our suffering from their stocked-up mansions and penthouses. But the backbone of their influence has generally gone unexamined.
Instagram, the foremost mechanism for celebrities to cultivate and control their public images, has transformed into a kind of Wild West over the last month—particularly in the U.S., where many celebrities are huddled on the coasts, from the Hamptons to Hollywood. (No word yet from Kanye, who would surely do individually well to be relaxing out at his Wyoming estate.)
Recently, music industry mogul David Geffen posted several grams of his $590 million superyacht, one with the caption: "Sunset last night... isolated in the Grenadines avoiding the virus. I'm hoping everybody is staying safe." After an online uproar, Geffen deactivated his Instagram. Still, there are other, less astronomically rich yet still financially blessed celebs to car
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 CBSIn his first interview since dropping out of the presidential primary campaign, Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) beamed into Stephen Colbert's house on The Late Show. And the host's big question was all about the "presumptive nominee" Joe Biden.
Asked if he's spoken to the former vice president since making his decision to exit the race, Sanders said yes before quickly pivoting to what separates the two men as opposed to the many things that unite them.
"It's no great secret that Joe Biden's politics are different than mine," he said. "But I have known Joe since I came to the Senate in 2006, worked with him when he was vice president in the Obama administration." As he did in his address to supporters earlier in the day, Sanders called Biden a "decent human being" and added, "I hope to be able to work with Joe to move him in a more progressive direction."
Read more at The Daily Beast.
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(Top headline, 23rd story, link)
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 Bernie Sanders, a democratic socialist whose progressive agenda pushed the Democratic Party sharply to the left, ended his White House campaign on Wednesday, clearing the way for a Nov. 3 election battle between former Vice President Joe Biden and Republican President Donald Trump.
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In an interview with The Washington Post, the House speaker held her ground as Senate Republicans press ahead with the Trump administration's latest request amid the pandemic.
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Trump says he will ‘rely very heavily' on experts before reopening economy
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(Top headline, 15th story, link)
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CDC loosening guidelines for some exposed to virus... Developing...
No Clear Path Seen To Restart Economy...
HOLY WEEK: Pastor says his parishioners would rather die than not go to church...
'Homeland' warns 'stressors' could trigger attacks on houses of worship...
California sheriff warns he can arrest and fine people $1,000 for not wearing masks...
State still way behind in testing...
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 House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff says he is considering using the teleconferencing software Zoom to hold hearings while social distancing restrictions remain in place.
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Mr. Sanders, a democratic socialist making his second run for the White House, withdrew after a series of losses to Joseph R. Biden Jr., who emerges as the presumptive nominee for the general election.
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(Top headline, 19th story, link)
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CDC loosening guidelines for some exposed to virus... Developing...
No Clear Path Seen To Restart Economy...
HOLY WEEK: Pastor says his parishioners would rather die than not go to church...
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California sheriff warns he can arrest and fine people $1,000 for not wearing masks...
State still way behind in testing...
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 When it comes to the new House committee tasked with overseeing the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic, House Majority Whip James Clyburn, D-S.C., said he is looking to the future not the past.
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