Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Joe Biden would implement public mask mandate
Russia loomed over the U.S. elections four years ago, but here's a 2020 twist no one saw coming: Vladimir Putin and Joseph R. Biden both want everyone in their vast nations to mask up in public. Published November 1, 2020
Donald Trump: ‘You know what’s looking good? Pennsylvania’
President Trump told a raucous Reading crowd Saturday that Pennsylvania is truly the keystone in his election night fortunes, declaring he spends so much time there because it could hand him a second term if he locks down places like Ohio and Florida, which he also won in 2016. Published October 31, 2020
Trump to Wisconsin: We win here, ‘it’s over’
President Trump told supporters Friday the 2020 race will be "over" if he wins Wisconsin again and that Election Day turnout could make it happen, even as many polls show him trailing Joseph R. Biden. Published October 30, 2020
Biden, Trump diverge on mask mandates
Russia loomed over the U.S. election four years ago but here's a 2020 twist no one saw coming: Vladimir Putin and Joseph R. Biden both want everyone in their vast nations to mask up in public. Published October 30, 2020
Trump: No European-style lockdowns amid virus surge
The U.S. cannot afford the type of lockdowns that are returning to Europe, President Trump told Florida supporters on Thursday, as western nations battle another surge of the coronavirus. Published October 29, 2020
Stocks tumble amid coronavirus fears, new lockdowns in Europe
Stocks are sinking as coronavirus cases rise, with airlines and cruise lines hit by fears of a resurgence and new restrictions on how people travel, shop and live in U.S. cities and in Europe, where France and Germany announced sweeping closures Wednesday. Published October 28, 2020
Lack of staffing, not beds, hurting hospitals in coronavirus care
The increasing number of COVID-19 patients is taxing hospitals, but the problem isn't so much about space as it is about staffing, with medical workers exhausted from the pandemic and fewer "traveling nurses" to go around. Published October 27, 2020
Trump: GOP will retake House, get ‘best stimulus’
President Trump predicted Tuesday the GOP would gain leverage in coronavirus-stimulus talks by retaking the House and holding the Senate and White House on Election Day. Published October 27, 2020
Coronavirus case-fatality rate down despite surge in cases
Deaths from COVID-19 are ticking up slightly in the U.S. alongside record highs for recorded cases, with California, Texas and Florida reporting the most fatalities overall in the past week while the Dakotas and Montana report the most deaths as a share of their populations. Published October 26, 2020
Donald Trump: Media are ‘losers’ for talking about COVID-19 nonstop
President Trump is pleading with Americans to focus on things besides COVID-19 in the final week of the campaign but Wall Street and his White House are making it difficult, with stocks tumbling on pandemic fears and a case-cluster forcing Vice President Mike Pence to scrap plans to attend a Supreme Court confirmation vote. Published October 26, 2020
COVID-19 cases strain rural hospitals, worry health officials
Hospitals are filling with COVID-19 patients again as the novel coronavirus surges across the country, pushing health care systems in rural areas to the brink and forcing them to consider ways to avoid overcrowding. Published October 25, 2020
VP Pence to keep up travel amid COVID-19 outbreak in his circle
Vice President Mike Pence will continue his campaign travel as an "essential" worker after his chief of staff, Marc Short, and other aides tested positive for the coronavirus, his office said. Published October 25, 2020
Trump on virus: ‘I had it, here I am’
President Trump told Wisconsin supporters on Saturday he brought back Big Ten football and that COVID-19 tallies are overblown, even as the state reels from one of the biggest coronavirus surges in the nation. Published October 24, 2020
Trump sees ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ as virus spikes
President Trump on Friday said the U.S. is "rounding the corner" on the coronavirus even as the nation recorded the second-most amount of cases since the start of the pandemic and hospital stays increased by 40% compared to a month ago. Published October 23, 2020
Biden: Red and blue states are going to go bankrupt without fed money
Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden late Thursday said localities across the country, regardless of political persuasion, will start laying off public servants and scaling back services unless Congress acts to provide federal support. Published October 22, 2020
Trump defends Kim Jong Un talks: No North Korea war
President Trump said Thursday he doesn't view North Korea's unveiling of a new intercontinental ballistic missile as a betrayal of his unconventional negotiations with dictator Kim Jong-un. Published October 22, 2020
Trump at debate says U.S. learning to live with coronavirus
President Trump said Thursday said the coronavirus "will soon be gone" but the nation can persevere through a potential next wave of the coronavirus, citing a forthcoming vaccine and declining case-fatality rate. Published October 22, 2020
Moderna completes enrollment for COVID-19 vaccine trial
Moderna's coronavirus vaccine trial is fully enrolled, with people of color making up more than one-third of the 30,000 participants, the drugmaker announced Thursday, as government scientists said they must build trust with communities of color and other Americans who will be expected to roll up their sleeves in the coming months. Published October 22, 2020
Biden, Trump battle over North Carolina
President Trump and the Biden campaign grappled for a foothold in North Carolina on Wednesday, sensing the route to the White House will run through the mountains, piedmont and coastal plains of a state with 15 electoral votes. Published October 21, 2020
Trump lashes out at Gov. Roy Cooper, media at North Carolina rally
President Trump took a swing at Gov. Roy Cooper, the media and Senate Democrats as he campaigned in North Carolina on Wednesday, marking his sixth visit to the pivotal state since the GOP convention in Charlotte in late August. Published October 21, 2020
