| Too many. More than 100,000 people are dead in the United States because of a virus no one had heard of before late last year, until the microscopic pathogen brought life and lives to a halt. The grim tally, which some compare to the casualties of war and previous disease outbreaks, is so gargantuan that it is difficult for even those trained to deal with death and grieving to get their arms around it. President Trump, who understands that a vaccine is the holy grail of halting the contagion, has said little this week about the fatalities. He had hoped on Wednesday to take advantage of a cheerier milestone with the SpaceX manned launch in Florida, but stormy weather postponed until Saturday the first U.S. blastoff with NASA astronauts in nearly a decade. He says he will fly back to Florida to see it. Before he can witness the excitement of a rescheduled event, today’s report on weekly jobless claims will serve as another reminder that U.S. unemployment could reach 20 percent or more by next month. The economic picture will get worse before it improves: Boeing, the stalwart American manufacturer, announced on Wednesday that it will lay off more than 6,000 workers this week because of falling demand during the pandemic (CNBC). A puzzle among some of the president’s allies is Trump’s showy but controversial appeals to his base this week, including distracting social media feuds aimed at TV’s Joe Scarborough and former President Obama; at Twitter over added fact-checks to Trump’s tweets about unsubstantiated claims about mail-in voting fraud, and at North Carolina’s governor, who is leery of lifting restrictions on in-person conventions of thousands of attendees, including the GOP’s nominating convention planned in Charlotte in August (The Hill). The Wall Street Journal: Trump today may order federal regulators to hold companies such as Twitter and Facebook liable if they curb users’ speech, according to a draft described on Wednesday night. The president is unhappy with social media outlets, Twitter in particular, for fact-checking his tweets and labeling conservative commentary that crosses a line into falsehood. Reuters reports that Trump is expected to order a review of a law that protects Twitter, Facebook and Alphabet’s Google from being held responsible for material posted by users. The Hill: Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey defends decision to fact check Trump tweet: “More transparency from us is critical.” Trump’s schedule today calls for a presidential discussion with experts about the upcoming hurricane season. Adding angst to anxiety, the president will call public attention to the risk of natural disasters while at the same time reckoning with an unprecedented pandemic and a recession. As Niall Stanage writes in his Memo, the president at the moment does not appear as sure-footed as his supporters would like, whether on policy, pandemics or presidential politics. NPR: Vice President Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, owns between $506,0000 and $1.64 million in stocks that could pose conflicts because of the federal coronavirus response. However, Wednesday did bring some good news, as Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) announced that the stay-at-home order in the nation’s capital will be lifted on Friday after nearly two months. The decision comes after the district experienced 14 days of declining community spread of the virus and a stabilization in hospitalizations. “In my mind, I call it stay-at-home light,” said Bowser of the relaxed restrictions. “It means the stay-at-home order has been lifted, and some activities have been added back to what we can do, but they are minimal.” Among other things, D.C. residents will be able to eat out at a restaurant with outdoor seating, shop curbside at nonessential stores and get haircuts (The Washington Post). In Maryland, Gov. Larry Hogan (R) announced that most of the state will move out of “phase one” of its reopening. However, Prince George’s County and Montgomery County are not included (Fox 5). Universities and colleges across the country also announced plans to bring students back in the fall, including Michigan State, Utah State, the University of Utah, and a number of schools in Massachusetts. CNN: Disney World set for July reopening. Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom to reopen on July 11; Epcot and Hollywood Studios on July 15. On Capitol Hill, a veto threat from the president forced Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) late Wednesday to hastily pull from the floor a bill that would have reauthorized intelligence surveillance programs. Opposition from members in both parties created doubts it could pass, and after a series of delays, the Speaker made a rare retreat. The fate of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act reauthorization is unclear (The Hill). While in session on Wednesday, lawmakers voted via proxy for the first time in House history in response to coronavirus health risks that are keeping some lawmakers out of Washington. Roughly 70 members cast votes by proxy through colleagues who were present in the chamber (The Hill). The history-making change was used as the House agreed to sanction senior Chinese officials responsible for the forced labor camps who have targeted Uighur Muslims and other Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang region of China (The Hill). House Republicans sued Pelosi arguing proxy voting is unconstitutional. The new process allows one lawmaker to cast votes for up to 10 colleagues. The Hill: GOP senators urge Trump not to restrict guest worker visas. The Hill: Frustration builds in key committee ahead of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) subpoena vote. The New York Times: Sam Johnson, Former P.O.W. and long-serving Texas congressman, dies at 89. 
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