COVID-19 Update, October 5, 2020: Weekend at Walter Reed

What a weekend. All the nation's crises converge as the president is hospitalized with COVID-19; his stay at Walter Reed Hospital is punctuated by a series of wildly conflicting reports about the state of his health. Questions abound: How did the most protected person in the US get sick? And where do we go from here?

The latest:

Conflicting official reports about the president's health spreads confusion over the weekend: tinyurl.com/y4fftp4c. Although he is reportedly feeling better, he had to be put on oxygen on Saturday: tinyurl.com/y6q3blfm. His physician says he omitted that fact to reflect an "upbeat" attitude: tinyurl.com/y4nc3d7a. The steroid used to treat him is reserved for serious cases: tinyurl.com/yyqt929s.

Learning that he had been exposed to COVID-19, the president went ahead with his schedule, including a fundraiser in New Jersey: tinyurl.com/y2sxbuna.

The idea of releasing the president from the hospital on Monday, floated over the weekend, appalls doctors: tinyurl.com/yyp23zl2. The president's now-notorious Sunday car ride also shocks medical experts: tinyurl.com/y46ucfkh. "Where are the adults?" Secret Service personnel cite the car ride as one example of the unacceptable health risks they face while protecting the president: tinyurl.com/yy34m7ob.

The hospitalization of the president and its associated crises leave the US in a vulnerable position globally, security experts say: tinyurl.com/y6ogoplk.

Despite a presidential itinerary that took in thousands of people over several days, there is little evidence that the White House is attempting any serious contact tracing: tinyurl.com/yxa58j9l.

Among those also testing positive for COVID-19 after attending the Rose Garden introduction of Amy Coney Barrett super-spreader event: Rev. John Jenkins, president of Notre Dame University: tinyurl.com/y3ykouwq; Senator Ron Johnson: tinyurl.com/yybnexad; Senators Mike Lee and Thom Tillis: tinyurl.com/y4c3xj7r; Kellyanne Conway: tinyurl.com/y3hk9vcc.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany tests positive for COVID-19: tinyurl.com/y47pwcdb.

Nick Luna, one of the president's assistants, tests positive for COVID-19: tinyurl.com/y523xq5v.

Claudia Conway, daughter of Kellyanne, has been diagnosed, too: tinyurl.com/yxdzxqfw.

At least 11 positive COVID-19 tests can be linked to the Cleveland presidential debate: tinyurl.com/y5emjkuq. Among them are the president's campaign manager, Bill Stepien: tinyurl.com/y3hxorna.

Congress reconsiders requiring COVID-19 tests on Capitol Hill: tinyurl.com/y4c3xj7r.

COVID-19 cases have risen in 33 states and Puerto Rico since August: tinyurl.com/y4e36cp8.

Fifty percent of Americans interviewed for a new poll say they know someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. Twenty percent know someone who has died from it: tinyurl.com/y34h4hl6.

A US advisory panel recommends that health workers should be first in line for a COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available; low-income minority groups are also a priority: tinyurl.com/y3mbkx5b.

Government spending cuts trickle down to small towns, adding to unemployment: tinyurl.com/y6bywoty.

Sunday's NFL game between New England and Kansas City was postponed following multiple COVID-19 diagnoses: tinyurl.com/y4lz4fph.

The release of the new James Bond film, No Time to Die, has been postponed again, until April 2021: tinyurl.com/y63pzpsv. The next film in the Fast and Furious series, F9, has been put off until Memorial Day weekend 2021: tinyurl.com/y5lgxolh. As part of the blowback from the No Time to Die postponement, the firm Cineworld temporarily suspends operations in the US and UK; this includes the Regal Cinemas chain: tinyurl.com/yxrjgkwm. The action makes sense when one considers how a hotly anticipated film like Tenet failed to attract audiences: tinyurl.com/y3yza8wx. The head of the National Association of Theatre Owners blames the No Time to Die delay on New York Governor Cuomo: tinyurl.com/y2vbox9r. The AMC Cinemas chain has its debt rating cut: tinyurl.com/y5dbyfp2.

Actors' Equity looks at providing a COBRA subsidy to unemployed members: tinyurl.com/y53u8h63.

Food for thought:

We can beat the coronavirus, but we have to fight it on its own terms, something we have yet to try: tinyurl.com/y4pq6p3f.

Around the country:

In California:

The governor delays issuing rules for the reopening of theme parks: tinyurl.com/yxwvk768.

In Florida:

Universal Orlando is closing the Volcano Bay water park for the winter: tinyurl.com/y5abc37o.

Florida bloggers raise tens of thousands for a food bank serving furloughed Disney workers: tinyurl.com/y6nk5o6k.

In Massachusetts:

The numbers of hospitalized patients keeps rising: tinyurl.com/y3zz6ysu.

In Missouri:

For the 12th day in a row, the state breaks its record for COVID-19 hospitalizations: tinyurl.com/y5ecoujw.

In New Mexico:

The state sees a 44% increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations in a week: tinyurl.com/y2flmhsv.

In New York:

New York City will shut down schools, restaurants, and nonessential businesses in nine hot spots in Brooklyn and Queens: tinyurl.com/yxjbdyp3. The governor warns that the pandemic is not over: tinyurl.com/y2fco3np.

The pandemic causes food insecurity to grow in New York City: tinyurl.com/y2j9znhg.

Around the world:

In France:

Bars will be closed as Paris is placed on a maximum COVID alert: tinyurl.com/yy7bew6y.

In India:

Journalists reporting on the government's mismanagement of the pandemic are facing prosecution of intimidation by authorities: tinyurl.com/y4dmlsrl.

In Iran:

Schools and mosques are closed as COVID-19 infections rise: tinyurl.com/y5vvelq8.

In the UK:

The Royal Opera House, strapped for cash and trying to stay afloat, puts a David Hockney portrait up for sale: tinyurl.com/y5yfhdyk.

Fasten your seatbelts: A defensive Boris Johnson warns of a "bumpy" winter to come: tinyurl.com/y5klqubn.

Mobilization:

More on the #WeMakeEvents Global Action Day: tinyurl.com/y35ec23y.

In the UK, industry groups unite to form One Industry One Voice: tinyurl.com/y3pz3os3.

For your pleasure:

It's Richard Wagner week at the Metropolitan Opera's streaming service, including a full Ring Cycle: tinyurl.com/y3kzfmdd.

For your pleasure:

UK-based indie pop band London Grammar offers "Baby, It's You." The atmospheric lighting is by Tim Routledge: tinyurl.com/y3w9yfln.

That's all for today. Stay safe. -- DB

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