Tom Howell Jr.
Articles by Tom Howell Jr.
Donald Trump says he’s bringing coronavirus briefings back
President Trump said Monday he plans to bring back the coronavirus briefings that dominated March and April. Published July 20, 2020
AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine shows ‘robust’ immune response to the coronavirus
A front-runner in the pursuit of a coronavirus vaccine said doses sparked a "robust" immune response in human trials, but the pandemic continued to exact a toll from coast to coast, with California pushing football and other sports from the fall to spring and President Trump announcing he will resume daily briefings about the worsening crisis. Published July 20, 2020
NIH ‘Shark Tank’-style helps develop RADx easier coronavirus test
Americans pining for better COVID-19 tests should see relief by the fall thanks to a $500 million federal effort to deliver rapid and portable tests, including a lunchbox-sized machine that reads pop-in cartridges and sample tubes that plug into computer tablets and spit out results. Published July 19, 2020
Coronavirus test result delays makes it near useless as public health tool
From coast to coast, demands are straining capacity as Americans looking to travel or return to normal life try to get checked for infection from the coronavirus. Even as President Trump boasts about the volume of testing, getting a result can take a week or so, making it almost useless as a public health tool. Published July 16, 2020
Coronavirus wreaks havoc on Mexico, Brazil, Chile
The Sun Belt is grappling with flare-ups of COVID-19, but the disease is causing havoc across the southern border, too, with Mexico surging to fourth on the death list and eclipsing former hot zones Italy and Spain. Published July 15, 2020
Peter Navarro: Dr. Anthony Fauci wrong about ‘everything I have interacted with him on’
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said in a new opinion piece that Dr. Anthony Fauci has been wrong "about everything I have interacted with him on." Published July 15, 2020
Coronavirus reopening pause, reversal threatens small businesses
Nearly two dozen states are pausing or reversing efforts to reopen as flare ups are erupting, despite a series of lockdowns last spring that were designed to "flatten the curve" and maintain hospital capacity. Published July 14, 2020
Donald Trump says he’s not the underdog in election
President Trump on Tuesday said he isn't the underdog in the coming election, citing internal polls and the election signs and enthusiasm he sees on the road. Published July 14, 2020
Pfizer coronavirus vaccine fast-tracked by FDA
The Trump administration fast-tracked trial vaccines for the coronavirus Monday as states across the South and West buckled from the rapid spread of COVID-19, forcing California to close indoor dining, museums and theaters while Miami considers another lockdown. Published July 13, 2020
White House: Donald Trump, Dr. Anthony Fauci maintaining a ‘good working relationship’
President Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health have a "good working relationship," the White House said Monday amid signs the administration is dinging the trusted expert for perceived errors during the coronavirus pandemic. Published July 13, 2020
Andrew Cuomo: N.Y. schools will get green light or red light in August
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he will determine by the first week in August if regional infection rates are low enough to reopen schools, saying he refuses to use the state's children as "guinea pigs" as President Trump makes a hard push to resume in-person learning. Published July 13, 2020
Trump to hold outdoor rally in Portsmouth, New Hampshire
President Trump will hold an outdoor rally in New Hampshire on Saturday, giving his campaign a shot at a mid-pandemic redo after a disastrous restart in Tulsa last month. Published July 5, 2020
Tammy Duckworth open removing George Washington statues: ‘Should listen to argument’
Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois on Sunday said she would listen to arguments for removing statues of George Washington, seeming to take a step further than former Vice President Joseph R. Biden as she's rumored to be a potential running mate. Published July 5, 2020
Phil Murphy, New Jersey governor, calls for coronavirus mask mandate, national strategy
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Sunday said the nation needs a nationwide strategy to deal with the coronavirus as flare-ups in the South and West imperil the progress his state made after getting slammed earlier this year. Published July 5, 2020
Sylvester Turner, Carlos Gimenez worry about positive coronavirus test rate
The U.S. steered out of a coronavirus maelstrom in the spring but faces a summer of sorrow if it cannot corral the fallout from early reopenings, wanton partying and lax compliance with federal safety tips that have been undermined at times by the White House, which gathered large crowds for Independence Day celebrations. Published July 5, 2020
Susan Rice: Donald Trump doing ‘our arch-enemy’s bidding’ with Vladimir Putin G-7 invite
Former national security adviser Susan E. Rice on Sunday accused President Trump of doing "our archenemy's bidding" by inviting Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Group of Seven amid a debate over intelligence that suggests Moscow offered bounties to Taliban fighters willing to target U.S. soldiers. Published July 5, 2020
Stephen Hahn, FDA commissioner, pressed on Trump claim 99% of COVID coronavirus cases ‘harmless’
Food and Drug Commissioner Stephen Hahn refused Sunday to referee President Trump's claim that 99% of COVID-19 cases are "totally harmless," a notion belied by administration scientists who estimate that only a quarter of infected persons never show symptoms. Published July 5, 2020
Trump on July 4: Those who built America ‘are not villains, they are heroes’
In an address on the White House lawn Saturday, President Trump proposed a statue garden for America's heroes and took aim "at the radical left, the Marxists, the anarchists, the agitators, the looters, and people who in many instances have absolutely no clue what they are doing." Published July 4, 2020
Greg Abbott, Texas governor, issues sweeping mask requirement
Gov. Greg Abbott issued a mask requirement for almost all Texans and limited mass gatherings Thursday as he contends with an explosion of COVID-19 cases. Published July 2, 2020
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ plea for July 4: No crowds, no tight spaces
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday pleaded with Floridians to avoid enclosed spaces and crowds over the Independence Day weekend, as the state posted over 10,000 cases of the coronavirus -- a single-day high -- ahead of a visit from Vice President Mike Pence. Published July 2, 2020