Friday Morning: The Trumps test positive

And what else you need to know today.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story October 2, 2020 Good morning. President Trump and the first lady have tested positive for the coronavirus. She says they are “feeling good,” but the news adds new chaos to the campaign. President Trump and the first lady, Melania Trump, on Tuesday.Tom Brenner for The New York Times The Trumps test positive President Trump and his wife, Melania, have tested positive for the coronavirus, he announced in a tweet shortly before 1 a.m. Eastern today. Afterward, she added that they were “feeling good.” The White House did not say whether they were experiencing symptoms. The diagnosis is the latest piece of stunning news in a year that has been full of them. It creates uncertainty about the president’s health and his ability to campaign 32 days before Election Day, when voting has already begun in some states. It is unclear how the couple contracted the virus. One possibility is that they did so from Hope Hicks, a close Trump adviser who traveled on Air Force One with him on Wednesday and began feeling sick that day. She tested positive Thursday. Joe Biden’s campaign has made no announcement about his condition. Biden appeared on an indoor stage with Trump for 90 minutes, at Tuesday’s debate. They stood more than six feet apart and, because of the pandemic, did not shake hands before or after the debate. Some experts thought Biden was unlikely to have contracted the virus, given the timeline and his distance from Trump. Others were less confident of that. The White House did not initially announce that Hicks had tested positive. (Bloomberg News reported it.) Instead, the White House appeared to put other staff members and visitors at risk of the virus by continuing to operate as normal. Kayleigh McEnany, the press secretary, who had also been on the plane with Hicks, held a briefing yesterday with reporters without mentioning it or wearing a mask. Trump has repeatedly downplayed the risk of the virus and behaved in ways that public health experts have said risked spreading the virus. He has refused to wear a mask in public and questioned its effectiveness. He has held crowded rallies where attendees did not wear masks. Many of his staff members did not wear them at Tuesday’s debate, even after medical personnel there asked them do so. The Trumps will quarantine in the White House for an unspecified period of time, and his doctor said he could carry out his duties “without disruption.” But his campaign schedule will almost certainly be canceled, at least for the immediate future. The status of the next presidential debate, a town hall scheduled for Oct. 15 in Miami, is unclear. Reactions: Expressions of concern and good wishes for the Trumps’ speedy recovery came from leaders in Russia, India, Britain and other countries. Stocks in Europe and Asia have fallen modestly today. Nicholas Kristof, Times Opinion columnist: “Best wishes to President Trump and the First Lady. Whatever one thinks of his policies, I hope we can be civil, avoid snark, seek lessons and wish them both a swift recovery.” Kelly O’Donnell, NBC News: “Not since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981 has there been so clear a threat to the health of an American President. A serious moment for the country.” Ashish Jha, dean, Brown University School of Public Health: “This is a nightmare. COVID19 is a serious infection, especially for someone who is older like Mr. Trump. I can’t believe he was infected. This is a total failure by [the White House] team to protect the President.” Peter Nicholas, The Atlantic: “In my reporting trip to the White House in August, I saw aides at their desks without masks, aides talking to one another in small offices without masks. It did not have the look of a White House that was worried about transmission of the virus.” The Times will publish the latest updates, all day, here. A photo essay tracks the president’s movements this week. THE LATEST NEWS THE VIRUS House Democrats passed a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill, a sign that they are pessimistic about reaching a deal with top Republicans on a bipartisan measure. The virus is surging in Wisconsin: Of the four metropolitan areas in the U.S. with the worst outbreaks, three are in the state. And it has recorded its largest numbers of daily deaths recently. New York City has opened all its public schools for in-person classes. But researchers at N.Y.U. worry the system’s testing plan is not aggressive enough to stop a large outbreak. THE 2020 CAMPAIGN Philadelphia Democrats will soon begin going door-to-door to encourage people to vote in person. The shift reflects concerns that Pennsylvania may reject many mail ballots. Gov. Greg Abbott limited each Texas county to one drop-off location for completed mail ballots. The move would force Harris County, which is larger than Rhode Island, to abandon 11 locations. Abbott cited election security; Democrats said he was trying to reduce voter turnout. Michigan’s attorney general charged two right-wing political operatives with making thousands of robocalls intended to intimidate minority voters from casting mail-in ballots. OTHER BIG STORIES Azerbaijan and Armenia are engaged in their most severe military conflict in decades, over a disputed territory on Europe’s eastern edge. Politico has an explainer. Amy Coney Barrett, Trump’s nominee to the Supreme Court, signed a newspaper ad in 2006 that supported overturning Roe v. Wade, the landmark abortion case. The Trump administration proposed cutting refugee admissions again next year, to no more than 15,000, down from the 110,000 approved slots in 2016. The Common Application for colleges has stopped asking students to report whether they have been subject to disciplinary action, citing disproportionate rates for Black girls. The W.N.B.A. finals begin tonight, featuring two of the league’s biggest stars: A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces and Breanna Stewart of the Seattle Storm. A paratrooper napped before deployment in January.Bryan Woolston/Reuters A Morning read: The Army released new guidelines for optimal soldier performance. Among the recommendations: strategic napping. From Opinion: A new project explores the Amazon rainforest. A good place to start: this visual story on how human development is wreaking havoc on the region, and on Earth’s climate. Lives Lived: In an era when women had a difficult time being heard in academia, the scholar Renée C. Fox was instrumental in creating the field of medical sociology. She has died at 92. The Times’s groundbreaking exposé of President Trump’s tax returns required the dedicated work of a team of journalists — deep data analysis, dozens of interviews and more. This rigorous work is possible because of our subscribers. Please consider becoming one today. Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT IDEA OF THE DAY: THE BAKER TRAP James Baker had quite a career: the only person to serve as the chief of staff to two presidents; the Treasury secretary who shepherded the sweeping 1986 tax-reform law; and the secretary of state who helped successfully wind down the Cold War. Much of Baker’s success stemmed from his ability to forge compromise, often along bipartisan lines. That’s a central theme of a new biography, “The Man Who Ran Washington,” by Susan Glasser of The New Yorker and Peter Baker (no relation to the subject) of The Times. James Baker with President Ronald Reagan in 1983.The White House The book also offers clues about how James Baker’s Republican Party has changed so much since his retirement. In recent years, he faced a wrenching decision about whether to break with the party over Trump’s nomination. He chose not to speak out, partly to protect his standing within the party. It has been a familiar story during the Trump presidency, as dozens of members of Congress criticize the president in private, sometimes disdainfully, but support him publicly. Baker’s “silence in the face of Trump’s outrages reflects the broader complicity of the so-called ‘Republicans who know better,’” Samantha Power, the author and diplomat, wrote in her review of the book. Power called the book “enthralling.” The Wall Street Journal, in its review, said the book had “the feel of a novel.” PLAY, WATCH, EAT, LISTEN Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times Make something comforting Leeks, carrots, celery, turnips and of course, potatoes (or any other root vegetables you have on hand) are the key to this cozy vegetable soup. Dump the ingredients into a pot, simmer and then blend until silky smooth. Serve with bread. Watch something … unforgettable Our weekly suggestion from Gilbert Cruz, The Times’s Culture editor: “Not everything that is faced can be changed,” wrote the author James Baldwin, “but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” It’s a line that is said near the end of “I Am Not Your Negro,” one of the most transfixing documentaries I’ve seen in years and a rare movie that’s available on several of the major streaming services. In a voice-over, Samuel L. Jackson reads from an unfinished Baldwin book about Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and Medgar Evers. Onscreen, we see archival footage of those men and of Baldwin himself, in appearances on talk shows and from his famous 1965 debate with William F. Buckley. I have watched this film every year since its release in 2017. It’s a lecture and an intimate letter, a reminder that to change the future, you must first face history. Jillian Freyer for The New York Times The go-to music critic For many young music fans, Anthony Fantano’s word can make or break an artist. He has reviewed songs and albums on his YouTube channel, The Needle Drop, for more than a decade, drawing more than two million subscribers. And he has helped bring a dying art form — the record review — to a new audience. “With the music magazine landscape all but decimated, veteran bloggers scraping to get by and survivors like Pitchfork and Rolling Stone subject to corporate overlords, Fantano’s D.I.Y. bedroom model feels increasingly like the future,” the Times pop music reporter Joe Coscarelli writes in a profile. Diversions Almost 35 years ago, Nintendo unveiled Super Mario Bros., the video game that turned its titular high-jumping plumber into a star. Here are 35 facts about Mario to celebrate. In the latest Modern Love, a woman saw her romantic future in the movie “Bend It Like Beckham,” but her future had other ideas. Games Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Sound before “Bless you” (five letters). Or try this week’s news quiz. You can find all of our puzzles here. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you on Monday. — David P.S. The word “mumblegore” — a genre of low-budget horror movies — appeared for the first time in The Times yesterday, according to the Twitter bot @NYT_first_said. You can see today’s print front page here. Today’s episode of “The Daily” is about Trump’s coronavirus infection. On “The Argument,” Opinion writers discuss the first presidential debate and Trump’s taxes. Lalena Fisher, Ian Prasad Philbrick and Sanam Yar contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. The Morning Briefing newsletter is now The Morning newsletter. You received this email because you signed up for the newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. 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Thursday Morning: Trump’s fear of Biden

And what else you need to know today.

View in browser|nytimes.com October 1, 2020 By David Leonhardt Good morning. The next presidential debate may be different. The N.F.L. postpones a game. And Trump is trying to prevent a normal election. Joe Biden during a train tour of Ohio yesterday.Gabriela Bhaskar for The New York Times Trump’s fear of Biden There is a theme that has run through President Trump’s entire re-election campaign: He is afraid that he cannot beat Joe Biden. It explains his extraordinary efforts last year to prevent Biden from becoming the nominee. And it explains his more recent efforts to discredit the election. Rather than running against Biden, Trump now seems to be running against democracy itself. I think it’s useful to think of the 2020 Trump campaign in three distinct stages. The first was during the run-up to the Democratic primaries, when Trump used the powers of the presidency to pressure at least one foreign country, Ukraine, to smear Biden (an effort that led to impeachment). Trump took no similar steps to damage Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren or Kamala Harris. Why? Trump often acts on instinct, and he may have done so in this case. But he is also a voracious consumer of polls, and polls consistently showed him faring worse in a hypothetical matchup against Biden than against any other Democrat. The second stage began after Biden clinched the nomination, and Trump doubled down on efforts to damage him. He portrayed Biden as a corrupt old politician, not so different from Hillary Clinton, or a closet socialist. It hasn’t worked. Biden’s lead over Trump has remained stable. By The New York Times | Source: Real Clear Politics That has led to the third stage: Try to prevent a normal election. Trump, with help from other leading Republicans, has increased his efforts to make it difficult to vote. His campaign has filed lawsuits in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and elsewhere to restrict voting by mail. (The Times Magazine has a new investigation on this subject, including Mike Pence’s role.) In recent weeks, Trump also began what seems like an obvious attempt at voter intimidation, encouraging his supporters to show up at polling places, purportedly to prevent voter fraud, which almost never occurs. Donald Trump Jr. has released a video calling for an “army for Trump’s election security operation.” Tuesday’s debate was the apex of the strategy, at least for now. Trump refused to allow a normal debate, constantly interrupting Biden. For voters, the result was a chaotic jumble. For Trump, it was one more attempt to undermine the normal functioning of democracy. There is still more than a month until Election Day — an eternity in politics. At this point, though, the picture from the last year and a half is remarkably consistent. Trump seems to believe he would lose a normal election to Biden. But in an abnormal election, with low turnout and protracted fights over ballot eligibility, who knows what will happen? And if Trump does lose, he is laying the groundwork to make the false claim that the election was rigged. As my colleague Maggie Haberman put it yesterday, “People close to him are blunt that the president knows he’s losing and is scared of it.” A programming note: Starting today, we’ve reorganized the next section of this newsletter, “The Latest News.” The new format organizes stories more clearly by topic. We welcome feedback, at themorning@nytimes.com. THE LATEST NEWS THE 2020 CAMPAIGN The debate stage in Cleveland on Tuesday.Ruth Fremson/The New York Times The Commission on Presidential Debates said it would soon announce changes to the remaining debates between Trump and Biden, after Tuesday night’s chaos. Among the possibilities: giving moderators the power to cut off a candidate’s microphone. “I never dreamt that it would go off the tracks the way it did,” Chris Wallace, the debate’s moderator, said in an interview with The Times. Republican lawmakers distanced themselves from Trump’s refusal during the debate to condemn white supremacists or the Proud Boys, a violent far-right group. Senator Lindsey Graham said the president should “make it clear Proud Boys is a racist organization antithetical to American ideals.” Biden started a train tour of Pennsylvania and Ohio in a bid to win back working-class white voters who helped Trump win those states in 2016. Barack Obama won both, twice. Democrats’ huge lead in absentee ballot requests has Republicans worried. But Democrats fear that advantage could backfire if mail ballots are rejected at high rates. Daily poll diary: Most voters pronounced Biden the debate’s winner in several instant polls. These surveys can be quirky, but the candidate who wins them tends to gain in the real polls, The Times’s Nate Cohn points out. Over all, Nate writes, yesterday brought “some of Trump’s worst polls since the convention.” THE VIRUS Coronavirus screening at a train station in Ahmedabad, India.Ajit Solanki/Associated Press A large new study in India found that children of all ages can spread the coronavirus. The study is not the last word in the debate, but it adds to the evidence that school openings are likely to lead to new outbreaks. The White House overruled the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and will allow cruise ships to begin sailing again after Oct. 31, rather than February. The governor of Mississippi, Tate Reeves, refused to extend the state’s mask mandate. “We should not use the heavy hand of government more than it is justified,” Reeves said. For the first time this season, the N.F.L. postponed a game — between the Tennessee Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers — after an eighth member of the Titans organization tested positive. The number of confirmed daily cases in the U.S. has risen about 25 percent since mid-September. These maps and charts have the details. OTHER BIG STORIES The Tokyo Stock Exchange shut down most of today because of a technical glitch. The baby son of the celebrity couple Chrissy Teigen and John Legend died shortly after birth. A judge in Brooklyn sentenced Clare Bronfman, an heir to the Seagram’s liquor fortune, to more than six years in prison for her role in Nxivm, a purported self-help group that members said was an abusive cult. The Los Angeles Lakers easily beat the Miami Heat in the first game of the N.B.A. finals, 116-98. A Morning read: The city of Denver is working to add green spaces to minority communities that have long lacked them — and that endure worse heat and fewer opportunities for outdoor activities as a result. Lives Lived: He was known as the “Berlin Patient,” the first person cured of H.I.V. Only later did we learn his name, Timothy Ray Brown, a Seattle native who underwent a successful experimental bone marrow transplant in Berlin in 2007. He died, of leukemia, at 54. Every day, a team of Times journalists works with reporters and editors around the world to create this newsletter — and help you make sense of the world. Please consider supporting our work by subscribing to The Times. IDEA OF THE DAY: THE END OF SNOW DAYS New York City announced last month that its school system would not allow snow days this year, instead requiring students to learn from home. The change could be the beginning of the end for the snow day as we know it. Kids enjoying a snow day in Prospect Park in Brooklyn last year.Stephen Speranza for The New York Times Schools that lost instructional time during the pandemic are desperate not to lose any more, and both teachers and students are now far more familiar with virtual learning. So it’s easy to imagine how snow days will turn into virtual-learning days even after the pandemic ends. Some snow-prone states, like Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, have given districts this option for several years. Is it a good idea? Opponents of snow days point to the pressure they put on working parents, as well as the problem of missed meals for low-income students. Of course, a virtual-learning day does little to solve either of those issues. And snow days are one of the great spontaneous joys of childhood. They are, as one mother told The Times, a “pause on real life and a chance to let kids be kids.” School administrators in Shakopee, Minn., are cleverly trying to have it both ways. They recently made the switch to virtual learning when it snows but will also set aside one day a year for a scheduled snow day. “In Minnesota,” Mike Redmond, the Shakopee superintendent, said, “it’s like a birthright you should have a snow day.” PLAY, WATCH, EAT, CROCS David Malosh for The New York Times Pasta night Make this tangy, salty-sweet pasta tonight, inspired by traditional caponata, an Italian dish that revolves around sautéed eggplant. The mix of eggplant and creamy ricotta makes for a hearty vegetarian meal. Essential viewing In Hollywood, Hispanic stories usually mean ones from other countries, largely overlooking the experiences of U.S.-raised Latinos. “The context, details and nuances that go into telling the story of a family in Mexico City won’t be the same for the story of a family in Los Angeles, which would in turn differ for one in Miami,” writes the film critic Carlos Aguilar. In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Aguilar put together a list of the 20 essential films since 2000 that capture the American Latino experience. The musical artist Bad Bunny has his own special-edition Crocs. Crocs are thriving In 2020, Crocs reign supreme. The comfortable foam clogs, long the chosen footwear of toddlers and gardeners, have crept into the fashion mainstream. That’s largely thanks to branded collaborations, like one with the luxury fashion house Balenciaga in 2017. You can now find Grateful Dead Crocs, KFC Crocs and even Drew Barrymore Crocs. On Tuesday, the latest special edition, designed with the Latin pop star Bad Bunny and adorned with glow-in-the-dark charms, sold out within 16 minutes. Diversions Working on your green thumb? Here’s a quick guide to saving seeds for veggies like beans, peas, tomatoes and lettuce. The late-night comedy hosts took aim at Trump’s refusal to condemn the Proud Boys. Games Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Guinness World Record holder for “English word with the most meanings” (three letters). You can find all of our puzzles here. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. — David P.S. Hear about theater during the pandemic, at a free Times event featuring the avid theatergoer Hillary Clinton and Broadway stars like Audra McDonald. It’s tonight at 7 Eastern. You can see today’s print front page here. Today’s episode of “The Daily” is about voting by mail. On “Sway,” Kara Swisher interviews Alexander Vindman, a key Trump impeachment witness. Ian Prasad Philbrick, Sanam Yar and Amelia Nierenberg contributed to The Morning. You can reach the team at themorning@nytimes.com. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. The Morning Briefing newsletter is now The Morning newsletter. You received this email because you signed up for the newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. Subscribe to The TimesGet The New York Times app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018