In Washington

• FEMA administrator Peter Gaynor cautiously told the House Homeland Security Committee yesterday that personal protective equipment (PPE) distribution in the U.S. is “healthy” but admitted that the agency has “a ways to go” before it is sure there is enough. Gaynor said that some states have between 60 and 90 days of PPE stockpiled. “This is not as simple as turning on a light switch and magically making more,” said Gaynor. “We still have many months to go until we start making enough in the U.S. to supply the demand and, as cases grow in the Sun Belt, demand goes up.” The hearing examined the national response to the worsening pandemic. Several Democrats criticized U.S. testing efforts and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had no one that agreed to testify before the panel that could definitely answer on the current capacity for testing.
• The Trump administration officially announced its nearly $2 billion agreement with the pharmaceutical company Pfizer for up to 600 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine it is developing. Under their contract with the federal government, the U.S. would obtain the first 100 million doses with the rights to acquire up to 500 million more. Americans would receive the vaccine for free. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would need to at least give the vaccine an emergency approval before it could be distributed. Large-scale safety and efficacy trials are to begin this month, with a regulatory review set for as early as October.
• Republicans and Democrats remain divided after meetings this week between Democratic leadership and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Steven Mnuchin. The administration told Democrats that it was willing to increase funding for schools to US$105 billion, which is US$5 billion more than Democrats had in the HEROES Act. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) argued that the amount needed for schools has increased to US$400 billion over the past two months since the May passage and the push to open schools.
• Republicans are also struggling with their own ability to find consensus on a Phase 4 coronavirus bill. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Senate Republicans are discussing the possibility of passing a short-term extension of jobless aid to extend the US$600 weekly supplement to unemployment benefits to give members more time to negotiate a long-term solution. CNBC is reporting that the Republicans are considering reducing that amount to US$100 per week.
• President Trump had a markedly more somber tone and a change in messaging in this week's coronavirus task force meeting as he said the pandemic would “get worse before it gets better.” In his first briefing since April, the President appeared to have grasped the gravity of the situation as his poll numbers have plummeted. The President appeared by himself with no other White House Coronavirus Task Force members present. He announced that the administration is working on a “strategy” to deal with the surge in cases but provided no details. Trump also acknowledged that voters would judge him on his leadership in the handling of the pandemic. The President also advised the public to socially distance and wear a mask. “Get a mask, whether you like the mask or not. They have an impact. They’ll have an effect, and we need everything we can get,” he said.
• Reuters reports that the White House is roiled with “infighting and tension” over the pandemic and divided over how to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The division is hindering an administration response to the recent surge. The article says Dr. Deborah Birx, and other physicians on the White House Coronavirus Task Force are increasingly frustrated as their calls go unheeded. Birx is reportedly also discouraged by the attacks on NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci’s reputation.
• Dr. Anthony Fauci was asked in a New York Times interview if it is possible to get the coronavirus pandemic under control without a federal response, Fauci said, “It would be better if things were a little more uniform. It just seems that unfortunately, in some sectors, there’s this feeling that there’s opening the country on one end of the spectrum, and public health measures that suppress things and lock them down on the other. They should not be opposing forces.”
• The Air Line Pilots Association wrote a letter to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell urging a “clean” extension for federal support of the Proworker Payroll Support Program (PSP) in the next coronavirus phase four bill. The PCP grant program was the center of the airline industry’s assistance in the CARES Act.

In the News

• United Airlines announced it will now require passengers to wear masks in its lounges and baggage claim areas, as well as on its flights. It is also reported that the airline company lost US$1.6 billion last quarter.
• The U.S.’s record number of COVID-19 cases are beginning to soar in additional states other than hot spots like Texas, Florida and Arizona. States like Oklahoma and Nevada are reporting record numbers and more than 62,000 Americans were reported sick on Tuesday and increasing the total case count to 3.41 million nationwide. Florida reported a record 132 deaths on Tuesday as mayors from Miami-Dade County warned Gov. Ron DeSantis that they are running out of time to avoid another economic closure. Meanwhile, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) has issued a statewide mask order to take effect on the evening of 23 July.
• Washington D.C’s Mayor Muriel Bowser yesterday announced an order requiring face masks to be worn in the District of Columbia in all public places. The guidance requires businesses to post signage and employers to provide masks to their employees. The order is effective immediately.
• Virginia and Maryland governors are moving toward stricter enforcement of mask and social distancing requirements inside bars and businesses after seeing the seven-day average of new infections increase in the DC Metro area. Both governors are taking bolder steps to increase health inspections and warn for restaurants and businesses to follow regulations or face fines and closures.
• Top business groups representing multiple industries filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the Trump administration over newly issued limits on work visas. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), National Retail Federation (NRF), TechNet and International Training and Exchange (Intrax) filed the complaint against acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The lawsuit requests declaratory and injunctive relief, following new limits set by the Trump administration on foreign workers by suspending the issuance of temporary work visas, including H-1B visas, H-2B visas, H-4 visas, L-1 visas and certain J-1 visas, through the end of 2020.
• The United States ordered China to close its consulate in Houston over concerns about intellectual property and private data, escalating American tensions with Beijing. A spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry called the move a unilateral "political provocation," the timing of which coincided with U.S. charges against two hackers in China accused of targeting U.S. companies involved in coronavirus vaccine research and stealing sensitive information from global companies.
• Energy stocks jumped on Tuesday, sending the S&P 500 Energy Sector Index up more than 6 percent, the best performance of any group in the S&P 500 index. Shares of energy companies gained amid rising oil prices, which on Tuesday hit their highest levels since March as investor optimism for a solid economic recovery grows.

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