Donald Trump Bashes Fox News In Two-Hour Marathon On Rush Limbaughs Show – Deadline

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Donald Trump called into Rush Limbaughs radio show on Friday for what was billed as a rally, and it turned into a two-hour marathon of media bashing, insistence that there is a COVID-19 cure, and a reversal on where the president stands on another coronavirus relief package.

As he did on previous interviews, Trump called for indictments of political rivals, and chided his attorney general, William Barr, for reports that he would not finish an investigation of the Mueller investigation until after the election.

Trump also bashed Fox News, as he has done before, arguing that the network is a much different thing that it was four years ago. Somebody said, What is the biggest difference? I said the biggest difference is Fox.

He singled out Paul Ryan, the former House speaker, who is a member of the board of directors of Fox Corp.

You watch this Fox, and it is a whole different ballgame, Trump said. And you know Paul Ryan is on the board of Fox. So I am sure that has something to do with it.

Limbaugh responded, The obstacles that keep being placed in front of you are no doubt there.

Trump went on. When Roger Ailes ran Fox, I mean Roger had a very strong point of view that is totally gone, and I think it is influenced by Paul Ryan.

The president singled out two commentators,Chris Hahn and Donna Brazile, for criticism, but said that he liked Fox & Friends, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham. Tucker Carlson, he said, is pretty good, and has his moments.

Later, Limbaugh said to Trump, You are a TV expert. I mean, theres no question. The Apprentice.

Well, I have to be. I have no choice because otherwise you couldnt survive it, Trump said.

Trump has devoted a lopsided number of interviews to the channel, and called in to two of its shows, Fox Business Maria Bartiromo and Hannityon Thursday. The president is scheduled to make his first on-camera appearance on Friday night on Tucker Carlson Tonight, where Dr. Marc Siegel will conduct and interview and medical evaluation.

Trump also criticized Fox News Sunday Chris Wallace for the way he moderated the first presidential debate. The president said that he won, and when it came to his repeated interruptions of Joe Biden, he claimed it actually might have spared him.

Id rather let him speak because hes mentally gone, and occasionally hed get off track and start talking about the birds and the bees, Trump said.

Trump also signaled a reversal on the talks for another COVID-19 relief bill. Earlier this week, he said that he was calling off negotiations with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi until after the election. He told Limbaugh, I would like to see a bigger stimulus package than either the Democrats or Republicans are offering.

He also used an expletive when talking about Iran, telling Limbaugh, They have been put on notice. If you f around with us, if you do something bad to us, we are going to do to you, things to you that have never been done before.

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Donald Trump Bashes Fox News In Two-Hour Marathon On Rush Limbaughs Show - Deadline

Covid-19 has unmasked the true nature of Donald Trump and Trumpism – The Guardian

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Just in case you were about to feel an unfamiliar spasm of sympathy for Donald Trump following his contraction of coronavirus, this week has provided a helpful reminder not only of his morally repugnant character but also of the danger he poses to the United States and the wider world.

Firmly in the first category is his attempt to blame his infection on the grieving relatives of slain soldiers, citing Gold Star families tendency to come within an inch of my face. Speaking to Fox Business on Thursday, Trump said, They want to hug me and they want to kiss me, and so perhaps it was them who had made him sick. Clearly keen not to keep all that viral load to himself, Trump later told Fox News in between coughing bouts that he plans to host a rally in Florida on Saturday and another in Pennsylvania. Hell doubtless repeat the gesture he premiered in his bargain-bin Mussolini performance on the White House balcony on Monday night, ripping off his mask with a flourish as if to prove that nothing and nobody will stop him shrouding his devotees in a cloud of his contaminated breath.

More serious are his assaults on democracy, which become ever more explicit. Lashing out at his own henchmen, he channelled Elton John to warn that the slavishly loyal attorney general, William Barr, would find himself in a sad, sad situation if he did not indict Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden for the greatest political crime in the history of our country, namely the federal inquiry into the 2016 Trump campaigns links to Russia. Like strutting on a balcony, threatening to jail your predecessor along with your former and current opponents for political crimes tends to be a feature of darkly authoritarian states rather than democratic ones.

As if to confirm that Trumps threats to democracy are not empty, that the signals he transmits are received, 13 men were arrested in Michigan on Thursday over a violent plot to kidnap the states governor and try her for treason. Youll recall that in April, Trump urged his followers, angry about the states lockdown, to LIBERATE MICHIGAN!. Trumps chief response to the revelation of this episode of domestic terrorism was not contrition, but rather a rebuke to the governor for failing to say thank you to my justice department for uncovering the conspiracy. That my is telling: it is the grammar of the authoritarian strongman.

Most Republicans continue, like Trumps doctors, to act as enablers in all this. Especially eye-catching was a tweet from infected senator Mike Lee of Utah, arguing that democracy was less important than liberty, peace and prosperity and that sometimes Rank democracy can thwart those goals. Few Republicans dare echo the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, who rather generously described Trumps increasingly unhinged ramblings as evidence that hes in an altered state.

And yet, the admission by the Republican leader in the senate, Mitch McConnell, that he had not gone near the White House since 6 August because of the administrations lax approach to masks and social distancing, was striking. Now, McConnell is not a man to speak without prior thought: unencumbered by scruples, he is a political calculating machine. And what that remark suggests is the calculation that Republicans need to distance themselves from a president they suspect is heading towards defeat.

Theyve seen the polls, same as everyone else. Those show Bidens lead growing when the race should be tightening, the Democrat consistently ahead in every battleground state bar Florida, and breathing down Trumps neck in states that should be reliably Republican, including must-win Ohio. Whats more, Bidens lead has increased since Trumps diagnosis a week ago. Hard-headed Republicans are beginning to suspect that the pandemic will be the presidents undoing.

If thats right, there would be a compelling, even karmic, logic to it. For Covid-19 could almost have been designed to expose the essence, and failings, of Trumpism.

Consider that one of Trumpisms defining traits is its contempt for truth, facts and science. It was during Trumps first weekend in office that he had his officials lie about the size of his inaugural crowd and speak of alternative facts. Opponents railed against this epistemic vandalism, but truth always seemed an abstract, even elitist concern. And then came coronavirus, accompanied by Trumps insistence that it would just disappear like a miracle, or that it could be chased away with an injection of bleach, as if to demonstrate in the starkest possible terms where a disdain for facts and for science leads: namely, to the graves of more than 200,000 Americans.

Similarly, Trumpism adapts the traditional Republican attachment to individual freedom and mutates it into a darker, Darwinian belief that the strong individual can and should do whatever they like, and to hell with the suckers and losers who might suffer as a result. In normal times, plenty of Trump supporters saw that as an exhilarating libertinism, one that allowed Trump to cheat on his wives and pay no taxes, all without consequences. Theyd have lived like that if they could. But coronavirus doesnt work that way. Suddenly the suckers and losers included Trump supporters, or their loved ones. The virus even caught up with Trump himself along with everyone who got near him.

And, of course, Trumpism is defined by its toxic brand of masculinity, mocking Biden for wearing a mask Might as well carry a purse with that mask, Joe, quipped one Fox host forgetting that covering your face is mainly to protect others, not yourself. Trump is still bragging that he is a perfect physical specimen, that hes seen off Covid, but he says it while wheezing. This virus has done to Trumpian machismo what its done to Trumpian disrespect for rules and science: its exposed it as hollow and a failure.

We dont know what further twists await in this long, melancholy drama; we dont know who will win next month. But if Donald Trump is ejected from office, Americans will still have to wrestle with a tough question: what does it say about the US if it took a pandemic to do it?

Jonathan Freedland is a Guardian columnist

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Covid-19 has unmasked the true nature of Donald Trump and Trumpism - The Guardian

How does Donald Trumps Covid care compare to the average 74-year-olds? – The Guardian

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From getting a helicopter ride to a military hospital with a specialized suite to receiving experimental drugs made available to fewer than 10 people, Donald Trumps experience with Covid-19 has been very different from that of your average 74-year-old American with a serious illness.

The president ignored these disparities after returning to the hospital on Monday night and in a video from the White House Trump said of Covid-19: Dont be afraid of it.

Heres a look at how different the experience of catching Covid-19 is for the most powerful 74-year-old in the US compared with most of his fellow citizens:

First, there is the simple step of realizing someone has the illness.

Trump had access to regular testing, something most, if not all, 74-year-olds do not.

As a white male, Trump was less likely to test positive for the virus. Though testing rates are similar across racial and ethnic groups, Hispanic patients were more than two and a half times more likely to have a positive result and Black and Asian patients were nearly twice as likely to test positive compared with white patients, according to Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).

This suggests people of color face increased barriers to testing which delay their ability to get a diagnosis until their condition is more serious.

People who test positive for Covid are usually told to monitor their symptoms at home, no matter what their age.

Trump was able to take a helicopter to a military hospital once he tested positive. And at his home, the White House, the president will be receiving an outstanding level of care from a team of well-equipped, dedicated medical staff.

He will have access to an at-home clinic with exam rooms and hospital equipment, including supplies to perform emergency lifesaving procedures. In an emergency, he can also turn to his fleet of helicopters to get him to the hospital in a few minutes.

The president has access to the best specialists, the best medical care and really any medical countermeasure that he would ever want

Dr Krutika Kuppalli, an infectious disease physician at the Medical University of South Carolina, said: The president has access to the best specialists, the best medical care and really any medical countermeasure that he would ever want. That is not the medical care most people have in the United States, or in the world.

If a 74-year-old is admitted to the hospital, they could, like the president, have access to the antiviral drug remdesivir.

But unless they enroll in a clinical trial, they cant access the experimental antibody treatment Trump is receiving. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, which makes the antibody cocktail, said it had been made available to fewer than 10 people outside of a clinical trial.

After Trumps oxygen levels fell, he also received a steroid usually reserved for people in more severe stages of the illness. Trumps doctors have not clarified if he was given the steroid, dexamethasone, because his illness was more severe than they have described or for a different reason.

Trump is the only person in the world known to be taking that combination of medication treatments. And typically, people are not discharged from the hospital while taking an injectable, experimental drug. The fact that hes able to do that shows how different his care is compared to other people, Kuppalli said.

The president does not have to worry about the cost of his healthcare, even after paying $750 in taxes in 2017, because free health coverage is a perk of being the president.

The other 74-year-olds are mostly looking to the government health insurance for adults 65 and older, Medicare, to cover their costs. Those who arent covered by it either have employer-sponsored health insurance or are not eligible for it because they arent citizens or permanent residents.

After being admitted to the hospital, if a 74-year-old patient has basic Medicare, they would be subject first to the $1,408 deductible, the cost they have to pay before insurance kicks in. Most Medicare beneficiaries have additional coverage which reduces these costs, but 6.1 million people just have the basic package.

If someone with the basic package must stay in the hospital longer than the president, for more than 60 days, they must also pay $352 for each additional day in the hospital.

It is not entirely free for people with Medicare supplements. Add-ons to the program can cost older adults up to $461 in monthly premiums and what is covered depends on what supplement they have.

Like Trump, most 74-year-olds would not need to worry about the cost of treatments such as supplemental oxygen. Much of the other care he is receiving, however, would not be covered for most older adults.

Tricia Neuman, executive director of KFFs program on Medicare policy, said it would be highly unusual for Medicare to cover an air ambulance, experimental drugs like the Regeneron antibody cocktail or remdesivir if it was being administered at home (it should be covered in the hospital).

Medicare patients would, unlike the president, have to pay for the over-the-counter drugs he is taking including vitamin D, zinc, melatonin and aspirin.

Despite the unique level of care Trump has access to, at the end of the day, he is still a 74-year-old man, which puts him at high risk of suffering severe respiratory problems because of his Covid-19 infection.

People between 65 and 74 are also 90 times more likely to die from Covid-19 than people between 18 and 29, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The rates are worse for Black and Hispanic patients. Across age group and sociodemographic factors, they have twice as high a death rate as white patients, according to KFF.

Kuppalli said the presidents existing health vulnerabilities, along with his decision to withhold information about his symptoms, raise questions about his fitness for office.

Kuppalli said: This is somebody who could really have many challenges in the next few years as president, and his ability to execute his functions as president as result of the long-term symptoms of the disease.

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How does Donald Trumps Covid care compare to the average 74-year-olds? - The Guardian

Donald Trump is a (tax) loser, just like a lot of other people | TheHill – The Hill

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What doBarack Obama,Elizabeth Warren,Hillary Clinton,Kamala Harris,Jimmy Carter andFranklin Rooseveltall have in common? They are all losers. So are Dick Cheney, Newt Gingrich, Jeb Bush and George W. Bush. At least, according to their tax returns.

All of these politicians have attempted to generate income through trading stock, renting real estate or conducting a trade or business but, in at least one year, have failed to post a profit associated with these undertakings, and instead generated a loss. And, just like more thanone million U.S. taxpayers in 2018 have done, all have claimed some type of loss as a deduction on their tax return.

The recent revelation of Trumps tax returns has started a national discussion regarding the deduction of losses. The tone of most news coverage seems to regard deducting a loss as if it were some shady tax planning scheme that requires a Swiss bank account and an expensive accountant in the Cayman Islands. Claiming losses, whether generated by rental real estate, as part of a business, or resulting from the sale of stock, is a fundamental part of our tax system. If you dont make money, you dont pay taxes.

The deduction of losses is geographically universal. Nearly every state in the union and every country on earth allows the deduction of losses on a tax return, and permits such losses to offset income in other years. This has essentially always been in our tax code even the individual tax Form 1040 from 1916 allowed for the deduction of Losses sustained during the year in transactions entered into for profit.

The deduction of losses is nearly universal among businesses too. Especially for businesses that have been operating for a long time, it is common to have claimed a loss in one year and used that loss to offset income in another. For example, the New York Times has persistently had net operating loss carryforwards on its balance sheet for the past decade, resulting in outcomes like the income tax refund of $22,757,000 it received in 2011.

Two years prior to that, the Times had a tax refund of $23,692,000. It received a tax refund in years as recent as 2018. (Incidentally, while the New York Times clamored for Donald TrumpDonald John TrumpFederal judge shoots down Texas proclamation allowing one ballot drop-off location per county Nine people who attended Trump rally in Minnesota contracted coronavirus Schiff: If Trump wanted more infections 'would he be doing anything different?' MOREs tax returns, it had tax disclosure issues of its own. In a study conducted by one of the authors of this op-ed and the Tax Justice Network, the New York Times was found to have been non-compliant with a tax disclosure requirement in the U.K. The U.K. requires companies to report on their tax strategy, tax planning and tax risk. The New York Times simply ignored the requirement.)

Why do we allow losses to be deducted? There are a variety of rationales, but doing so encourages entrepreneurs to take risks, and it also makes the tax system not as one-sided. If the government gets some of your profit when you succeed, it seems reasonable for the government to also take pity on you and leave you alone when you fail (or even give some back when you fail). It is also important to allow losses from one year to offset income in another year. Otherwise, two businesses that earn identical profits over time, but, with different patterns of earnings and losses, can be subject to two very different tax liabilities.

Some of the uproar about Trumps tax returns is that his persistent losses prove he is an inept business person a literal loser in business. And it could be even worse if bad business decisions resulted in personal indebtedness to a person or entity whose goals are at odds with those of the U.S.This perspective is not without merit, and it would be useful to know who this debt is owed to. Moreover, large losses in his core real estate businesses are a far cry from his self-touted image of a thriving entrepreneur.

However, the trouble with judging a business by its tax returns is that it is hard to distinguish a company that takes advantage of legitimate deductions (if the Trump deductions are legitimate; the IRS and the Joint Committee on Taxation are apparently looking into that) that produce losses from a company that loses money because its being poorly run. The rules for tax accounting are different from financial accounting rules the rules which investors use to judge if a business is profitable especially in ways that would affect the Trump empire.

For example, financial accounting rules and tax rules for depreciation are very different, with much larger deductions generally being allowed for tax purposes. Remember that Amazon, Apple and Google are regularly hitting your news feed for paying little to no income taxes. How successful would those companies look if we only considered their tax returns? At a minimum, a tax return does not provide a full picture of a companys financial health. Time will tell whether the Trump empire is a going concern.

Regardless of whether one may change their view of Trump as a businessperson or a taxpayer in light of the losses hes taken, the fact remains that deducting losses against income is no crime. If a business loses more money than it makes, it does not owe taxes and its losses can often reduce a tax liability in other years. It is how our tax system works, and how basically every other tax system on earth works. Its a perfectly acceptable, legal and economically rational practice. Anyone insinuating otherwise does not understand the tax system and is simply lost.

Andrew Belnap is an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austins McCombs School of Business. Jeff Hoopes is an associate professor of accounting at the University of North Carolina's Kenan-Flagler School of Business and the research director of the UNC Tax Center.

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Donald Trump is a (tax) loser, just like a lot of other people | TheHill - The Hill

Update: Here’s what is known about Trump’s COVID-19 treatment – Science Magazine

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President Donald Trump has maintained a steady schedule of campaign rallies, which may have exposed him to SARS-CoV-2.

By Jon CohenOct. 5, 2020 , 12:20 PM

Sciences COVID-19 reporting is supported by the Pulitzer Center and the Heising-Simons Foundation.

On 2 October, the White House announced President Donald Trump received an experimental antibody treatment after a test revealed hesinfected with SARS-CoV-2. At the time, he reportedly hadmild COVID-19 symptoms, including fever and congestion, and he was transferred to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. Later, the presidents medical team confirmed he had started a course of remdesivir, an antiviral drug shown to modestly help hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Two days later, on 4 October, the team revealed Trump had been given a steroid normally reserved for severe COVID-19 cases, although his physician offered optimism about a quick recovery, even suggesting he might soon be discharged from Walter Reed.

Its a combination of two antibodies directed against a key protein of the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2. They bind to a region on the main surface spike protein that helps the virus attach to a receptor on human cells calledangiotensin-converting enzyme 2. The targeted region is dubbed the receptor binding domain. One antibody comes from a human who had recovered from a SARS-CoV-2 infection; a B cell that makes the antibody was harvested from the persons blood and the genes for the immune protein isolated and copied. The other antibody is from a mouse, which was engineered to have a human immune system, that had the spike protein injected into it.

Experiments in bothgolden hamsters and rhesus macaquesthat were intentionally infected with SARS-CoV-2 showed the cocktail could reduce viral levels and disease pathology.

Regeneron, the maker of the cocktail, earlier last week presented preliminary data from its ongoing clinical trial in people who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 but were asymptomatic or, in the most extreme cases, had moderate diseasea group that would appear to mirror Trumps current condition. No serious safety concerns surfaced, andthe treatment reduced viral loadand shortened symptomatic disease in patients who did not have SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the trials start. Its unclear whether the treatment can prevent severe disease, but there were hints that it might: Participants who received a placebo had more medical visits.

A separate trial is assessing the impact of the treatment on hospitalized COVID-19 patients, but Regeneron has yet to report any results from that study.

Not exactly. Trump received an 8-gram infusion of the treatment. Regenerons data showed a 2.4-gram infusion worked as well as the higher dose at reducing SARS-CoV-2 levels in people. This was widely seen as good news because monoclonals are difficult and expensive to produce, and a lower dose means more people can ultimately receive it.(On7 October, Trumps personal physician said the president was negativefor SARS-CoV-2 antibodies when he received the cocktail.)

Likely out of an abundance of caution by the presidents medical team, says George Yancopoulos, co-founder and chief scientific officer of Regeneron. Yancopoulos does not directly know why Trumpsphysicians chose to use 8 grams, but says the companys data indicate theres very, very limited risk that the antibodies will cause harm at either dose. The higher dose might last longer, he said, and at some time points in the companys study, Regeneron did see trends suggesting the higher dose more powerfully beats back the virusthe company used the amount of viral genetic material found with nose swabs as a proxy for SARS-CoV-2 levels in the entire body.

If I had to treat one patient, Id give the high dose, Yancopoulos says. From a societal point of view and the need to treat as many people as possible, Id give the lower dose.

The Regeneron study found the treatment only worked in people who did not have SARS-CoV-2 antibodies at the start of the study. It also worked best in people who had higher levels of the virus. Whether the president had those antibodies and a high viral load has not been made public. I couldnt speculate because it has to do with an individual patient, Yancopoulos says.

No. The treatment consisted of two monoclonal antibodiesmeaning each was produced by making identical copies, or clones, of an antibody gene in a single B cell. Polyclonal antibody cocktails refer to antibodies made by mixtures of B cells.

The antibodies are typically only available to people who participate in clinical trials. Trump theoretically could have enrolled in the ongoing treatment study that reported preliminary data last week, but that trial randomly assigns half the participants to receive the antibodies; the other half serves as a control group and receives infusions of an inactive placebo. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation called expanded accesstechnically known as21 CFR 312.310allows physicians to request compassionate use of experimental treatments through an investigational new drug pathway used for individual patients or for emergencies. These are designed to be used in these rare and special circumstances, Yancopoulos says. This is not the first time weve done compassionate use for these monoclonal antibodies. This is not a mechanism for widespread distribution.

Yes. Both Regeneron and Eli Lilly, which similarly reported encouraging preliminary clinical trial data last month from a single SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibody, are discussing the possibility of an EUA with FDA. Lilly reported signs that its antibody reduced the need for hospitalization, but as with Regeneron, too few participants have so far become seriously ill to reach a convincing conclusion to this critical question.

No. Although the monoclonal antibodies infused into Trump were not made from or in fetal cells, Regeneron did develop that treatment with the help of a long-lived line of cells established from the kidneys of a fetus electively aborted in the Netherlands around 1972. The company relied on those widely used cells, known HEK-293 cells, to make mimics of the coronavirus spike protein. Researchers used these proteins to test the potency of antibodies found in COVID-19 patients or made inmice with a humanlikeimmune system (see initial question).The antibodies selected for the companys cocktail, however, were thenmass produced in nonfetal cells.The creation of the humanized mice also did not rely on HEK-293 cells or other cells from aborted fetuses or human embryos.Regeneron scientists detail their methods inthe supplementary materialtothis paperpublished inSciencein August.

Remdesivir is an antiviral drug developed by Gilead Sciences, originally to treat the hepatitis C virus. It did not perform well against that pathogen but has been tried against Ebola and other viruses, after showing some activity in cells and animal models. The drug inhibits a viral enzyme used for replication of the pathogen. Earlier this year, it demonstrateda modest clinical benefit in a trial with hospitalized COVID-19 patients, leading FDA to grant Gilead an EUA for the drug. That EUA has since been expanded for use in patients with mild disease although its benefit in them is not clear. The drug has become widely used for COVID-19 patients despitecontinuing skepticism that it has a major clinical benefit. Because it and the monoclonal antibodies target different parts of the virus, administering them together may have a synergistic effect. One COVID-19 clinical trial is testing remdesivir and Lillys antibody, for example.

On 4 October, Sean Conley, the White House physician, said in a press conference that Trump had also been started on the steroid dexamethasone. The drug dampens the bodys immune response and can keep it from wreaking havoc in the late stages of COVID-19. It is the onlytreatment so far that has been shown to reduce the mortality in patients with severe COVID-19, but there are some indications that it may actually be harmful if given too early in the disease course. In the United Kingdoms Recovery trial there was a clear benefit for patients requiring oxygen or ventilation but not for other patients. Conley said Trump had experienced two episodes of transient drops in his oxygen saturation. Independent doctors were quick to point out that dexamethasone can have serious side effects including agitation, paranoia, and even psychosis.

The statement released on 2 October by the presidents physician said that in addition to the antibodies, Trump has been taking zinc, vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin and a daily aspirin. That wording leaves unclear whether he was taking those substances before his diagnosed infection. Notably, the statement does not indicate whetherTrump was or is taking hydroxychloroquine, the antimalarial he controversially pushed as a COVID-19 treatment.

Famotidinehas been suggested to be a treatment for COVID-19, but its also a popular heartburn remedy, sold widely under the name Pepcid. A clinical trial testing it in hospitalized COVID-19 patients in New York was not able to recruit enough patients to properly evaluate its impact. The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, which initiated that trial, released a statement on 2 October citing evidence it was helpful for COVID-19 but also saying, We have yet to prove [famotidines] efficacy. The institute says its eagerly awaiting FDA approval of a trial that will evaluate whether famotidine can help people who are not hospitalized.

This story was originally published on 2 October at 9:25 p.m.

*Update, 3 October, 1:20 p.m.:Information about Trumps use of remdesivir was added to the story.

*Update, 5 October, 9:15 a.m.:Information about Trumps use of dexamethasone was added to the story.

*Update, 7 October, 3:55 p.m.:Information about the Regeneron treatment was added to this story.

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Update: Here's what is known about Trump's COVID-19 treatment - Science Magazine

This is a stunning and historic rebuke of Donald Trump’s presidency – CNN

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In an editorial titled "Dying in a Leadership Vacuum," the editors of the Journal blasted President Donald Trump (although not by name) for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Here's the key bit:

"Anyone else who recklessly squandered lives and money in this way would be suffering legal consequences. Our leaders have largely claimed immunity for their actions. But this election gives us the power to render judgment. Reasonable people will certainly disagree about the many political positions taken by candidates. But truth is neither liberal nor conservative. When it comes to the response to the largest public health crisis of our time, our current political leaders have demonstrated that they are dangerously incompetent. We should not abet them and enable the deaths of thousands more Americans by allowing them to keep their jobs."

And, the New England Journal of Medicine isn't some fly-by-night organization. It was founded in 1812(!) by John Collins Warren, a doctor and an academic. It was the first medical journal published in New England. It has continued to be one of the most sought-after places for innovative and important medical research to be published. "Our mission is to publish the best research and information at the intersection of biomedical science and clinical practice and to present this information in understandable, clinically useful formats that inform health care delivery and improve patient outcomes," reads the NEJM website.

So, when the editors of such a prestigious medical journal feel the need to break with their 200-plus year tradition of not weighing in on presidential politics, we need to pay attention. Especially when they conclude things like the Trump administration has "taken a crisis and turned it into a tragedy" and "the magnitude of this failure is astonishing." (Worth noting: The editors never explicitly endorse former Vice President Joe Biden in their piece.)

To be clear: This editorial will not change most peoples' minds about the presidential election. For Trump backers, they will dismiss it as the work of a bunch of academic elitists who never liked Trump anyway. For Trump detractors, this editorial will simply be a(nother) data point in their case for why Trump should be voted out in 26 days' time.

This is a massive crisis. It has already cost us so much -- in terms of lives lost and jobs gone. Not to mention the psychological toll. And the impact on kids of learning virtually for months.

There is no question that Trump's slow response to the crisis, his administration's struggle to expand testing capacity, his advocacy of unproven treatments and his skepticism about mask-wearing have had a decidedly negative impact on how Americans have dealt with the pandemic.

That is not political. That is fact. And it's because of those facts that people and institutions that have never been political before -- like the New England Journal of medicine -- feel compelled to speak out about just how not normal this all is.

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This is a stunning and historic rebuke of Donald Trump's presidency - CNN

Trump lashes out at Barr after realizing inquiry into Russia probe won’t be public before election – USA TODAY

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Dr. Murtaza Akhter says an experimental drug used to treat President Donald Trump for COVID-19 is "not a cure" despite what the president says. Trump was treated with Regeneron's antibody drug and he credited it with improving his health. (Oct. 8) AP Domestic

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump has lashedout both in public and private at Attorney General William Barr after realizingthe Department of Justice investigation into the origins of the Russia probe won't be made public before Election Day, administration officials told USA TODAY.

Trump has rampeduphis criticism of Barr in recent days ashe seeks to make the origins of the Russia probe a major election issue. The president has long cast the Russia investigation as a political hoax meant to undermine him and has called for the indictment of his political enemies, including former President Barack Obama and former vice president and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

But Barr has said previously that neither Obama nor Biden are under a criminal investigation, despite the president's assertions that his predecessor committed criminal offenses. Administration officials also said Trump is aware that such indictments are unlikely.

President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr in a 2019 photo.(Photo: Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images)

Still, while recovering after contracting coronavirus, Trump has publicly pressured his attorney general.

"Unless Bill Barr indicts these people for crimes, the greatest political crime in history of our country, then we're going to get little satisfaction unless I win," Trump told Fox Business News Thursday.

Trump has expressed similar sentiments in private, said two administration officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.

A Justice Department spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment.A spokesman for John Durham, the chief federal prosecutor in Connecticut,whom Barr tappedlast year to look into the origins of the Russia investigation and the FBI's surveillance activities, declined to comment.

The Russia investigation, which the FBI began in 2016 and special counsel Robert Mueller took over in 2017,cast a dark cloud over much of Trump's presidency and led to the indictment of half a dozen former aides and associates. Mueller's investigation found that Russia interfered in the last presidential race to help Trump win. Members of the Trump campaign were eager beneficiaries of that effort, although Mueller's teamdid not find evidence of a conspiracy with the Kremlin.

So far, the Durham investigation has led to one indictment.

Russian meddling: GOP-led Senate panel offers playbook on Russia's election interference

Former FBI lawyer Kevin Clinesmith pleaded guilty last summer to falsifying an email used to support the surveillance of former Trump campaign aide Carter Page during the early months of the Russia investigation. Clinesmith, who worked for the FBI for four years, altered an email that investigators relied on to justify an application to wiretap Page, according to court records. The altered email indicated that Page was "not a source" for the Central Intelligence Agency; the original email from the CIA indicated otherwise.

Trump and his Republican allies in Congress have beenwaiting anxiously for Durham's full findings, and Barr told Fox News last summer that there will be "significant developments" before the Nov. 3 election.

But White House aides said Trump seems aware there will be no report from Durham or more indictments ahead of November, in part because of the informal Justice Department policy against sensitive legal actions too close to Election Day. Aides said Trump and Barr have discussed aspects of the Durham probe, but they don't know details of those discussions.

During the Fox News interview, Trump claimed that Durham has already gathered enough evidence.

John Durham is looking into the origins of the FBI's investigation into Russian election interference.(Photo: Bob Child, AP)

"I don't know what happened to Durham, but we're going to find out what happened to Durham, but he's got so much stuff," Trump said.

Speaking on Friday with radio host Rush Limbaugh, Trump was asked about media reports that Barr had told Republicans that there won't be a report from Durham before the election.

The Durham inquiry: Ex-CIA chief John Brennan interviewed for 8 hours as part of Durham's review of Russia probe

"If that's the case, I'm very disappointed. I think it's a terrible thing, and I'll say it to his face," Trump said of Barr.

Advocates who see Trump's pressure campaign and the Durham inquiryas reelection tacticsare keeping a close watch on the president.

"Donald Trump has used his administration again and again to prop up his reelection campaign, from propaganda videos to undermining vote-by-mail," said Jordan Libowitz, spokesman for the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. "But he's done nothing more egregious than pressure the Department of Justice to investigate and bring charges against his political enemies."

The Justice Department's inspector general concluded that the FBI was justified in launching the investigation into Russian election meddling and possible ties to the Trump campaign, but it found that the surveillance of Page was rife with errors and misstatements.

The GOP-led Senate Intelligence Committee, which conducted its own investigation on Russia,has also released voluminous reports that backed Mueller's findings on Russian interference.

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Trump lashes out at Barr after realizing inquiry into Russia probe won't be public before election - USA TODAY

The Presidents Latest Silver Bullet – The Atlantic

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Read: Vaccine chaos is looming

First, there simply are not yet enough doses in the world. Regeneron currently has enough doses for 50,000 patients. Eli Lilly, which makes a different COVID-19 monoclonal-antibody therapy that is also in clinical trials, says it will have 100,000 doses in October. To put that in context, the United States has 50,000 new cases of COVID-19 every day.

The manufacturing of monoclonal antibodies cant just scale up on a dime to treat everyone, says Howard Levine, who leads a group of pharmaceutical manufacturing consultants at BioProcess Technology Group. The antibodies are made inside large stainless-steel tanks using genetically engineered ovary cells from hamsters. Like all living things, they can grow only so fast. The tanks are also sophisticated pieces of equipment that can take months to install, Levine says. Regeneron and Eli Lilly have already been increasing manufacturing capacity, and they expect to have 300,000 and 1 million doses, respectively, by the end of the year. The two companies have recently also filed for an emergency use authorizationa looser and faster process than formal approval by the Food and Drug Administration-which Trump says will come soon.

The monoclonal antibodies will have to be reserved for patients who are at highest risk for eventually developing severe COVID-19. To be able to treat thousands [of patients] is probably doable, says Wayne Marasco, who studies monoclonal antibodies at Harvard. Tens of thousands is pushing it, short-term. Doctors will have to predict who might benefit the most. People who are older, have underlying conditions, or are already exhibiting serious symptoms such as low oxygenlike the president himselfwould be more likely to get monoclonal antibodies.

But doctors will have to make the decision early in the course of illness, before those patients get seriously sick. Monoclonal antibodies are likely to work best when the virus is still trying to gain a foothold in the body. In general, you want to stop the replication of a microbein this case, the virusat the earliest point in time, Cohen says. But stopping the virus depends on patients being able to get tested for COVID-19 early, receive their results quickly, and go to a hospital that stocks an experimental treatment before they really even need hospitalization. For now, monoclonal antibodies have to be administered through an IV, so they cant be offered at pharmacies or at most doctors offices.

These hurdles dont pose a problem for the president, who has the very best medical care the country has to offer. But as my colleague Olga Khazan writes, COVID-19 treatment is markedly less comprehensive and accessible for the average person. Ordinary Americans have repeatedly, in the course of this pandemic, experienced delays in testing. And when the U.S. earlier this year began allocating initially scarce doses of the antiviral drug remdesivir, which Trump has also taken, many hospitals came up empty-handed.

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The Creepy Trump Meme Taking Over Twitter – The Atlantic

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If the joke makes no sense, thats the point. This style of scary tweet was popularized earlier this summer by a handful of enormous pop-music fandoms that used it as a pointless trolling tactic. That its now bled over into the presidents mentions is indicative of just how ubiquitous stan culture has become. Memes that were once niche now inform how huge numbers of people react to or experience major news events.

Read: The joke's on us

Though a few of these phrases have drifted around odd corners of the internet for some time, it was stan culture that brought them out of obscurity and turned them into meme campaigns. The most common Punjabi phrase people are using to hex the president seems to have originated in a tweet unrelated to Trump, from a fan account dedicated to Cory Monteith, the Glee star who died in 2013. The phrase was picked up for hexing by fans of the K-pop group BTS and the rapper Nicki Minaj, as well as a random assortment of internet oddballs. And Amharic phrases similar to the ones being tweeted at the president were used by hundreds of Taylor Swift fans earlier this summer, who tweeted them at music critics they believed had given the singers new album unsatisfactory reviews. In that case, the text was usually paired with images of Swift Photoshopped to look like a demon, but since Friday, they have been paired with all kinds of haunting scenes: a Lego character with human skin, a giant tarantula with the arms of a man, Teletubbies with black holes for eyes, the Long Furby. But it remains unclear how Swift fans originally stumbled across this tactic for Twitter taunting, or why exactly they chose Amharic for it. They obviously think it looks spooky, though others have criticized them for this cultural insensitivity.

The hexes are similar tobut far more aggressive thananother common fandom tactic: replying to everything with homemade fan cam clips of ones favorite star. Both are methods of sowing chaos and derailing the logic of a conversation, and often they dont even involve any explicit organization. Networks of fan accounts have been so coordinated for so long that they can make something a trend without tryingeven a fake curse in an arbitrarily chosen foreign language.

Not so long ago, the antics of stans were generally focused on issues related to pop music and celebrity, and typically siloed by fandomAriana Grande and Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber fans keeping to their own, unless they were warring with one another. But now the experience of being online is a stan-culture experience for nearly everyonea big, somewhat generic, and somewhat hallucinatory one. Earlier this summer, K-pop fans used fan cams to taunt QAnon supporters and people who were tweeting things like White Lives Matter, to much applause from the broader internet. Now people from all sorts of fandoms are tweeting joke hexes at the president, because its simply another thing theyve decided to do. People with no obvious relation to any one of these fandoms are copying them. Unfortunately, it might soon be another de facto way to respond to a tweet from someone you dont particularly like.

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After Donald Trump’s deranged balcony address, we’re all gasping together – The Guardian

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A rare moment of unity in the US election, as Donald Trump marked his return to the White House by gasping along with his detractors. On Monday night, the president puffed up the front staircase of his residence, his face coated in several more gallons of paint than the front elevation of the building. Dont let it dominate your lives, he panted of the virus, a bad case of which tends to dominate your death.

Yet there he was, this hideous kink in the arc of history, giving the most dangerous balcony performance since Michael Jackson had his baby crowdsurf off one. The American people are all Blanket now.

As for the optics, deranged balcony address is certainly a look but not one that tends to end well. How might this version turn out? Unfortunately, its not a question Trumps attention span equips him to answer. His reference points for the form are the occasional three minutes of historical documentaries hes forced to watch while searching his stomach-folds for the TV remote. It feels like he switches over to Fox News before discovering how a whole series of 20th-century balcony stories ended.

Still: dont call him Wussolini. He beat this illness which he still very much has like a man. One of the really manly ones, who takes all the best drugs and leaves everyone else exposed and misled and unprotected. Even so, early reactions to the gasping spectacle suggest the move could only have backfired more if Trump had ascended the front steps via a hastily installed stairlift carrying a pack of adult diapers.

Once hed wheezed through the unpleasantries, all that remained was to remove his mask and set about infecting any remaining staff yet to be exposed to his droplets. Think of Trump as the 83rd Airborne, parachuting his deadly particles deep into butlers respiratory systems. He wont give you a Purple Heart, but he might give you purple lungs.

Alas, its disappointing to find potential victims failing to feel grateful for the opportunity. One current secret service agent assigned to the first familys detail expressed frustration, telling CNN: Were not disposable. Two housekeeping staff have already tested positive for the virus. As the events of the past week show, the presidents respect for human life is so low that he is willing to send an entire army of servants into 14-day isolation or worse in order to keep up a steady stream of trans-fats being fed to him. Dying in the line of duty used to mean taking a bullet for the president; it could now involve taking him a Diet Coke. Thank you for your drinks service.

As for how Trump spent the rest of his evening, I assume it was straight on to the monstrous leaders WhatsApp to josh with the other bros about how they kill their underlings. RocketmanKim loves a firing squad, Vlad69s a huge chemicals guy, but Trump just clears his throat while being brought his fourth burger of the day. Boom! I cough on them like a bitch! When youre famous you can do that.

Face it, hes absolutely bossing the likes of Kim and Xi and MBS in the fantasy evildoer leagues. Its not that the other guys dont have lethal motorcades and abysmal interiors taste and balcony addresses and death cults and doctors who mislead the world. But doing them in a democracy well, that makes it triple points.

Speaking of physicians who really need to heal themselves, what a striking misinformation campaign its been from presidential medic Sean Conley, who has been continually obfuscating about Trumps condition since calling his symptoms mild, only for even the White House to contradict him. For me, thats the new low. Of course, we now expect the president of the United States to lie as default to tell us black is white, or up is down, or to claim he never said something hes on camera saying. But for a professional and senior doctor to mislead apparently without remorse shows how necrotic the body politic has become, from the very top down. The lying, the reality-denying is not a one-off case its the other epidemic.

In fact, its kind of amazing that conspiracy theorists have lined up so supportively behind Trump, when hes really the most convincing proof yet of all their worst fears. The Man really is lying to them, he really is wicked, and he really does want to kill them. The damning evidence is right there in front of everyone. Only, instead of begging Oliver Stone to make a film about it, they want to give Trump a second term.

Like me, you probably hate to see a conspiracist wimp out of their beliefs just when its coming up roses for them. Its as if the moon landing hoaxers were signing over their life savings to Nasa, or the flat Earthers booking a round-the-world ticket. So come on, guys back yourselves! After all, if not now, then when?

Marina Hyde is a Guardian columnist

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After Donald Trump's deranged balcony address, we're all gasping together - The Guardian

Flies, Birds and Baby Bears: How Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Jimmy Fallon Have Handled Animals on TV – The Advocate

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Photo: Eric Baradat | Getty Images

Flies, Birds and Baby Bears: How Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Jimmy Fallon Have Handled Animals on TV

Within minutes of its appearance on the Wednesday night vice presidential debate, the fly that landed on Mike Pence's head was trending on social media. Memes were made en masse and group chats were filled with fly-talk until the most memorable moment of a night between two American leaders was not about policy,temperamentor suitability for the job of vice president. Instead, it was about an animal so small that Vice President Pence seemed not to even notice it was there.

Related:Pence and the Fly: How to Swat Distractions as a Public Speaker

Whenever you're dealing with animals, there's always an air of unpredictability. Several years ago I attended a Broadway play that included a trained dog, rather than an actor in a costume, and five seconds into its big scene, the pup wandered off in search of treats as its fictional owner did his best to catch it and get it back on script. No matter how well you prepare, no matter who you are, there's always a chance that an animal might just steal the show and not always for the reasons you'd hope. Here are some recent examples of how public figures have handled animal appearances in widely viewed forums.

During an interview with CNBC, Barack Obama encountered a more obvious and persistent fly, which began distracting him during one of his answers. Rather than ignore it and continue with the interview,President Obama attacked the problem head-on literally, by swatting the fly when it landed on his hand and saying, "Now, where were we?"

Donald Trump also faced down a fly during one of his speeches at the White House. President Trump shooed the fly away with a hand, saying, "Whoops! How did a fly get into the White House?"

Perhaps President Trump's most famous animal interaction came during his time just before the presidency: During a photo shoot forTime, President Trump posed with a bald eagle. During one shot, while trying to move aspirin out of the camera view, President Trump reached out and the bald eagle seemed to snap at him, as if it might attack. President Trump managed to keep a fairly calm demeanor, teasing with the crew in the moment but later saying, "What you will do for a cover ... this bird is seriously dangerous, but beautiful."

During his 2016 presidential run, Bernie Sanders found himself upstaged by a bird, which drew the audience's attention by landing on the stage and then, in a surprise move, flying directly to the podium. The crowd all cheered for the bird, and even Senator Sanders couldn't help but laugh and actually used the bird to his advantage, saying, "I know it doesn't look like it, but that bird is really a dove, asking us for world peace! No more wars!"

No article about animal TV appearances would be truly complete without mentioning a member of the Irwin family, and Robert Irwin has taken on his father Steve's tradition of going to late-night shows like Jimmy Fallon's. Fallon plays along in this video as Irwin brings out a venomous scorpion, baby black bears and legless lizards.

"They're so cool, aren't they?" Irwin says of the lizards.

"No!" Fallon protests, flinching away from creatures named Lulu and Fluffy. "These are the creepiest things."

Related:How to Dazzle Your Audience in the First 7 Seconds of Your Speech

Related:Flies, Birds and Baby Bears: How Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Jimmy Fallon Have Handled Animals on TVPence and the Fly: How to Swat Distractions as a Public SpeakerHow 3 Veterinarian Best Friends Built a Business That Delivers Happy Barks and Happier Poops

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CNNs Chris Cuomo Rips Donald Trumps Choreographed Return To White House: What A Bunch Of Bullsh*t – Deadline

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Theres no love lost between CNN host Chris Cuomo and Donald Trump. That was crystal clear as Cuomo went on camera shortly after Trump returned from Walter Reed Medical Center.

After landing in Marine One, a COVID infected Trump walked up the stairs of the South Portico, removed his mask and looked out from the balcony defiantly for several minutes as official photographers snapped his photo and news cameras captured the scene.

Staffers could be seen behind him inside the building as Trump walked into the White House. He did not put his mask back on. But then Trump walked back out, stood for a few seconds and returued to his staffers, still without his mask.

CNNs White House reporter Kaitlyn Collins says the exit and re-entry was a reshoot, possibly for a campaign video, as photographers and videographers captured Trumps arrival before staffers.

Related StoryDonald Trump Gives First In-Person Speech Since Coronavirus Diagnosis; White House South Lawn Transformed Into Campaign-Like Rally

Over video of Trump standing on a White House balcony on Monday night Cuomo said sarcastically, There he is, hair blown majestically. Reshooting the scene for his own ad.

I hold rallies, Cuomo imagined Trump saying, and I tell you to ignore masks. Im going to rip mine off as I vanquish the virus because I am a leader!

Cuomo then retuned to reality and said plainly to the camera, What a bunch of bullsh*t.

He didnt just walk in the White House one time with no mask tonight, said Cuomo. He had his video crew capture that stupid scene again so he could put out propaganda.

Cuomo railed against the fact that Trump, who has seemingly already infected over a dozen White House staffers, was taking off his mask for the camera and then entering an enclosed space with other people who could become infected.

You want a metaphor, said Cuomo, Youve got a president who is a drunk driver who is pushing others to drive drunk. Thats what he is.

Do I want to see a drunk driver get hurt? Hell no. But I worry more about the people he hits, said the CNN host.

Trump later tweeted a video seemingly made made in the White House doorway saying of the virus, Dont let it dominate youYoure going to beat it!

Others pointed out that during his time on the balcony the president, who needed supplemental oxygen at least twice during his stay in the hospital, seemed to be gasping for air as he posed for photos.

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CNNs Chris Cuomo Rips Donald Trumps Choreographed Return To White House: What A Bunch Of Bullsh*t - Deadline

The political history of concealing illness – Newsday

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In the late 1970s, after suffering a series of strokes and other medical crises that left him increasingly weak and incoherent, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev wrote a boastful diary entry about his recent doctor's visit: "[They] checked [my] brain cells, said everything was good, you should be envied and congratulated[,] you're strong and healthy."

During his shortened hospital stay with COVID-19, Donald Trump tweeted that he was feeling "better than 20 years ago," while his physician (who has praised the president's "incredible genes") announced that he was "doing great" a rosy assessment called into question by his repeated bouts on oxygen and an intensive course of treatment.

Trump's obsession with projecting the appearance of good health echoes a similar fixation among the ailing leadership of the late Soviet Union, whose leaders died in rapid succession in the early 1980s while insisting on their own (and the country's) perfect condition. Like his Communist counterparts, Trump's predilection for pageantry offers a hollow illusion of vitality while letting potentially fatal problems fester.

Brezhnev had been General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party since 1964, and saw his health decline considerably following a 1976 stroke. According to some accounts, he also suffered from heart failure, as well as an addiction to sedatives and sleeping pills. Kremlin doctors struggled to rouse Brezhnev for official meetings and televised appearances, which broadcast his slurred speech and shaking hands to millions of viewers.

With information about his deteriorating condition restricted to the Politburo, Soviet citizens filled in the blanks with rumors and jokes that cast the general secretary as dying, dead or perpetually regenerated. According to one joke, Brezhnev's daily routine began with reanimation, followed by makeup, a banquet, an awards ceremony and concluding in clinical death.

As Brezhnev's mind and body failed, an adoring cult grew around him that stoked his ego. Paeans to Comrade Brezhnev's "unflagging energy, principles and vision" appeared on the front pages of major newspapers, while official ceremonies hailed "Dear Leonid Ilich" with extended applause and kisses. Obsequious peers in the Politburo granted him medals including the glittering Order of Victory, a diamond-encrusted military decoration from World War II that was dubiously awarded in honor of his minor role as a political commissar on the southern front.

After Brezhnev's death by heart attack in 1982 at age 75, Yuri Andropov spent 15 months in office before dying of kidney failure in 1984 at 69. His replacement was Konstantin Chernenko, who was already seriously ill when he took over at age 72. Both leaders, like Brezhnev, hid the reality of their condition from the public. In February 1985, Chernenko was shown on television receiving the results of elections to the Supreme Soviet in a peach-colored office that was in fact the disguised foyer of his hospital room. Party officials congratulated him on claiming victory with 100% of the vote; the ill leader, laboring to breathe, read a short speech praising the country for successfully fulfilling all of its plans. A month later, in March 1985, he died from a combination of severe emphysema, congestive heart failure and cirrhosis of the liver.

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Late Soviet leaders' denial of sickness and glowing self-image were part of their inability to acknowledge greater signs of ill health and to address a troubled health care system. The Soviet establishment framed premature death as the domain of the depraved capitalist West (seen, for example, in disparaging press coverage of the AIDS crisis). For decades, the party proclaimed that socialist medicine was the best in the world while failing to invest adequately in health care. Though premature death (above all from alcoholism and cardiovascular disease) consistently kept male life expectancy below 65, the state proved incapable of acknowledging its failings. As life expectancy indicators declined in the 1970s, mortality rates simply vanished from Soviet discourse, and earlier gains continued to be trumpeted as evidence of the country's strength.

This trend has a disturbing parallel with America's contemporary predicament and Trump's efforts to conceal his battle with COVID-19. While Trump's health is chronicled by obsessive media coverage and White House updates, the details of his condition remain murky. Data about his test results and the condition of his lungs has been supplanted by the sort of absurdist political theater common among Soviet leaders. In his own spectacle of repressed infirmity, Trump signed a blank piece of paper in a conference room at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to prove that, in his daughter Ivanka's words, "nothing can stop him from working for the American people. RELENTLESS!"

As in the Soviet Union, the leadership's concealment of illness and projection of strength is tied to the state's failure to foster healthy lives for its people. Despite the fact that the U.S. spends more on health care than any country in the world, life expectancy has been on the decline for several years, due largely to an increase in "deaths of despair" from drug overdoses, suicide and alcoholism (centered in pro-Trump regions like the Ohio Valley).

In place of solutions, Trump offers empty promises of national invigoration that mask his administration's failure to address the social and economic crises that have reduced longevity and made the coronavirus outbreak particularly deadly (especially among older people and poor communities of color). The president has framed the virus as a foreign plague that justifies his administration's xenophobic policies while encouraging states to reopen and attempting to dismantle the Affordable Care Act.

Rather than marshaling the country's resources to improve public health, Trump has refused to wear a mask and told Americans not to fear a disease that has already killed over 210,000 of their fellow citizens. In this late Soviet redux, Trump lets the country get sicker while enjoying elite medical care that flatters his vanity, paid for by taxpayers who can't afford anything like it.

The Soviet outcome of this strategy doesn't bode well for the country. The Communist leadership's gilded facade of good health was brought down by Mikhail Gorbachev, who in 1986 launched a sweeping reform program that exposed the country's rot and inadvertently destroyed the system itself.

Seventy-seven-year-old Joe Biden, like Trump, belongs to a gerontocratic political class that has struggled to adapt to a changing world. Yet for all his weaknesses, Biden recognizes the severity of the pandemic and the necessity of securing adequate care for all citizens. It remains to be seen whether Trump will get four more years to accelerate American decline. What's certain is that denial of sickness offers little chance of health and a historical lesson in ruin.

Neumeyer is a historian of Russia and Eastern Europe and fellow at the European University Institute, where she is writing a book about death and despair in late Soviet culture. This piece was written for The Washington Post.

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David Treadwell: America is better than Donald Trump – pressherald.com

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We are in the midst of the worst pandemic in more than 100 years with over 200,000 deaths; horrendous fires raged in California, Oregon and Washington; the economy teeters on the brink. Meanwhile, President Trump was at a rally in Nevada with massive crowds (over the state and federal guidelines) with mostly mask-less people leading the crowd in chants of Lock him up!, referring to President Barack Obama.

Let that sink in. Now ask yourself: Can America withstand four more years of Donald Trump? Absolutely not. America is better than Trump.

No one can convince Trumps hard-core base to give up on their fuhrer, er, leader. Theyve drunk the Kool Aid. Everything Trump says is true; everything else is fake news. Luckily, Trumps rabid cult encompasses only about 35 percent of the population at most.

So heres my take on the numbers. Hard-core Trump supporters: 35 percent; hard-core Trump haters: 45 percent. That leaves 20 percent undecided. This article is directed at the undecided group.

Consider science. Trump downplayed the corona virus even though he knew it was lethal. He told Bob Woodward that he didnt want to spread fear among the public. Yet in his rallies he tries to do just that, claiming that the country would go to hell if Biden is elected. Trump consistently refutes health officials in his own government who give statements based on science; then he tries to bully them into submission.

Trump denies climate change, stating that it was not the cause, for example, of the fires in the northwest, assuring Americans that things will get cooler. The Scientific American magazine recently came out endorsing Joe Biden, the magazines first-ever presidential endorsement, because Trump rejects science and evidence. The American public can take the truth, Mr. President, but we cant take your lies. America is better than that.

Consider the military. Trump dodged the draft because of bone spurs. He claims to love the military, yet he disparaged Vietnam War hero John McCain for getting captured. Even worse, it recently came to light and confirmed by several sources that Trump has referred to veterans as suckers and losers. Trump has no allegiance to the military or to anyone else outside himself or his immediate family. America deserves a patriotic Commander in Chief.

Consider Trumps allegiance to dictators. When it came to light that Russia had paid bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing Americans and other allied service members in Afghanistan, Trump did nothing to investigate these charges or demand a retaliation. For whatever reason, Trump never dares to take on Putin. After Saudi Arabia masterminded the brutal slaying of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident and American journalist, Trump ordered no retaliation that might upset his buddy, the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.

Consider Attorney General William Barr. Since assuming the office, Bill Barr has brazenly and willingly served as Trumps Roy Cohn and fixer, working on behalf of Trump, not the American public. Sixty-five faculty members an astounding 80% of the faculty at the George Washington University Law School, Barrs alma mater, wrote a joint letter noting that Barr has failed to fulfill his oath of office by undermining the rule of law and breaching the Constitution. America deserves better than Trump, a tin pot dictator. America deserves a leader who will abide by the Constitution.

Consider, too, how many of Trumps political aides have been charged with or convicted of felonies: Michael Cohen (tax fraud, lying to Congress) Paul Manafort and Rick Gates (several financial crimes), Roger Stone (obstruction, witness tampering, lying to Congress), Michael Flynn (lying to the FBI) and Steve Bannon (fraud), among others. That said, Trump is in good company when it come to being a grifter. He paid only $750 in taxes in 2016 ad 2017 and appears to be millions of dollars in debt. His Im a great businessman claim has been blown up.

Consider Karma. Trump , who now has he virus, has mocked people who wear masks since the beginning of this pandemic. At the first Presidential debate in Cleveland, Trump made fun of Biden for wearing a mask. Moreover, Trumps immediate family refused to wear masks even though masks were required at the facility. Closer to home, at a fundraiser in Maine attended by Donald Trump, Jr., photos revealed crowds packed closely together and not wearing masks. Call it entitlement swaddled in ignorance and infused with arrogance.

Theres not enough space in this column to address other salient issues, such as the disparaging comments that retired generals have made about Trump or the fake Trump University and the fake Trump Foundation or Trumps ugly comments regarding peaceful protestors or his constant bullying and belittling of the press. That probably doesnt matter since most Americans and readers of this column have made up their minds about Trumps personal qualities and character. I just hope and pray that enough voters who pulled the lever for this con man in 2020, will make the right choice, the patriotic choice, in November. Our nations very democracy rests on the upcoming election. America is better than Trump.

David Treadwell, a Brunswick writer, welcomes commentary and suggestions for future Just a Little Old columns. [emailprotected]

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The Superspreading Presidency of Donald Trump – WIRED

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So does that mean? I would say the president is a superspreader, Scarpino says. Im happy to say that.

Things didnt have to be this way. Have tight lockdowns, keep everybody from coming into contact with anybody, and R0 goes down. Even the people who are better at transmitting (theyre carrying more virus, theyre at the peak time in their infection, theyre loud talkers, whatever) dont have anybody to transmit to. No more infections.

Or, you know, do the opposite of that. Foster social conditions in which the virus spreads (cold, dry, noisy, crowded, no ventilation). Dont wear masks and make fun of people who do. Result: lots of infections. A virus has biology, and so does its host, but it spreads in an environment, in a context. This is where biology meets policy. You can decompose the transmission of a pathogen into the biological features of the individual pathogens themselves, the biological features of the host, the sociological aspects of the hostand when were talking about humans, we think about policies, the sociotechnical systems embedded in the defective behaviors. All of those things have to interact for transmission, Scarpino says. What we see in the United States time and again is this confluence of reckless policy, poor guidance from federal public health agencies around what people need to do to keep themselves safe, and then the biology of the pathogen and the humans.

Scarpino is part of a team of researchers that has been working on a slightly different characterization of how the virus moves through populations. Their construction looks at a particular form of crowdedness, of how closely packed together people are at different spatial scalesin a building, in a neighborhood, in a city. The specific mathematical term theyre interested in is called Lloyds mean crowding, basically the number of contacts you might expect from random chance transmissions in a given area divided by the population of that area. What theyve found is that more densely packed places are more bursty when it comes to Covid-19. When the virus gets there, it burns through the susceptible population hotter and faster, a sudden, sharp peak of sick people all in one place at one time.

The burstier places might seem isolated at first, and that can make it look like theyre protected. Until they arent. Thats what happens in meat-packing plants and elder-care facilities. It happened in Manaus, a city in the heart of the Amazon rainforest where officials didnt detect any Covid-19 cases until March. Over the next four months, the virus went on to infect up to two-thirds of the population and killed one out of every 500 people. To Scarpino, the White House looks bursty, too. Its really tightly connected, nobodys really wearing masks, lots of social connections. It was really a matter of when. When the virus shows up, its going to sweep through. Youre going to have superspreading. Its just going to take a while, Scarpino says. Really it was just inevitable, because its really a microcosm of what we see playing out over the US: a combination of risky behavior, crappy policy, low testing, and in the White Houses case the exact rightor wrong, depending on how you think about itconnectivity and social network structure.

And not to sound like a Twitter reply-guy here, butthat surprises you because why, exactly? This is the same White House that couldnt institute widespread testing for the disease, or nationwide contact tracing. Its the same White House that promoted untested treatments, and spread informational smog like saying disinfectants and ultraviolet light might work inside peoples bodies. Its the White House that mostly failed to establish reliable clinical trials. Its the same White House that tried to bend the data in the unimpeachable Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Its the same White House with a president who mocked mask-wearing right up until his own hospitalization, and in fact blocked the distribution of 650 million masks to Americans. Its the same White House that rushed the reopening of restaurants and other businesses. Its the same White House that attempted to block more stringent requirements for new vaccines. Its the same White House that had staff and a president show up to a debate after exposure to a deadly pandemic disease and didnt tell anyone. Its the same White House that derided wearing masks as a way to reduce the spread of virus from people without symptomsboth in the world generally and in the White House itself, as a matter of personal choice, even with multiple staffers ill. Its the White Housethe presidentthat told people not to let the virus dominate their lives, who went home from the hospital when he was still sick and almost certainly still infectious. These are all, in their way, superspreading behaviors, as sure as doing a bar crawl when youre sick.

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The Superspreading Presidency of Donald Trump - WIRED

Nurse who has seen ‘hundreds of people suffocating to death’ moved to tears after Trump downplayed coronavirus – CNN

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Cristina Hops, who works on the frontlines helping patients fighting coronavirus, said she was upset after reading the President's tweet on Monday, in which he told Americans "don't be afraid of Covid. Don't let it dominate your life."

"When I read that and I got home, I was just so angry about it that I felt like I needed to say something," Hops, who is based in Seattle, Washington, told CNN.

Her message resonated -- and the video quickly garnered more than 300,000 views on TikTok, as of Thursday evening. It's been shared across social media platforms, with people lauding the nurse for speaking her mind.

"The hospital that I was working at was completely overrun," she told CNN. "It's not possible to give everybody the care that they need and deserve when the hospital is that full."

"People are going to take this (Trump's words) as everything is okay and it's not a problem anymore and that's just not the case," she said. "It's just not true."

Hops said she hopes that those who see her video understand the importance of taking precautions when it comes to the virus.

If the President were to see her video, she said she wants him to realize his experience with the virus does not reflect the experience of every American.

"What's most important is that we're taking care of each other and we're looking out for each other," she said. "And I don't feel like his tweet or any of his tweets reflect that."

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Nurse who has seen 'hundreds of people suffocating to death' moved to tears after Trump downplayed coronavirus - CNN

Get To Know The Star of Nickelodeon’s New Show ‘Santiago of the Seas’ Kevin Chacon! – Just Jared Jr.

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Kevin Chacon has an exciting new role!

The teen actor is starring as the voice of Santiago in the brand new Nickelodeon series Santiago of the Seas, premieres TODAY (October 9) on Nick Jr.

Heres a synopsis: Infused with a Spanish-language and Latino-Caribbean culture curriculum, the action-adventure series follows eight-year-old Santiago Santi Montes, a brave and kind-hearted pirate, as he embarks on daring rescues, searches for treasures and keeps the high seas safe in a fantastical Caribbean world.

I couldnt believe I received the role for Santiago. I felt blessed and gratefully accepted, Kevin told JJJ. It means a lot [to be a part of this show]. I never would have imagined myself this far in my career.

Santiago and I have many similar traits, like our kindness and our energy, he added.

To celebrate the premiere of his new show, Santiago of the Seas, JJJ got to know the star with 10 Fun Facts!

Santiago of the Seas Sneak Peek!

Click inside to learn 10 Fun Facts about Kevin Chacon

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Get To Know The Star of Nickelodeon's New Show 'Santiago of the Seas' Kevin Chacon! - Just Jared Jr.

Japan seeks to boost catch limits of prized bluefin tuna – Thehour.com

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Elaine Kurtenbach, Ap Business Writer

Japan seeks to boost catch limits of prized bluefin tuna

MITO, Japan (AP) Japan has proposed raising its catch quotas for Pacific bluefin tuna, a fish so highly prized for sushi and sashimi that its population is at less than 5% of historical levels.

An online meeting of countries that manage the Pacific bluefin that began Tuesday is studying the proposal to raise Japan's catch limits for both smaller and larger bluefin tuna by 20%.

A slight improvement in the spawning population for the fish has raised confidence that it can recover from decades of overfishing. But conservation experts say increasing catch limits too soon could undo progress toward restoring the species.

Increasing harvests of such fish could also drive prices lower, making the industry less profitable in the long run, the Pew Charitable Trusts said in a report issued Tuesday.

The report, Netting Billions 2020: A Global Tuna Valuation, put the market value of seven tuna species including bluefin at $40.8 billion in 2018. Despite increased catches, that was a decrease from $41.6 billion in 2012.

Just because increasing catch is sustainable does not mean it is always the right thing to do," said Grantly Galland, an officer in Pew's international fisheries team.

Prices for most species of tuna have fallen due to oversupply of caught fish, he said.

The meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission and the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission includes more than two dozen countries that collaborate to manage fisheries on the high seas and curb illegal and unauthorized fishing and other activities that endanger highly migratory species such as the Pacific bluefin.

The countries participating in management of the Pacific bluefin committed in 2017 to reducing their catches to help return the species to 20% of its historic size by 2034.

Japan plays a critical role in the survival of the species not just because of its huge appetite for the fish. The Pacific bluefin spawns almost entirely in seas near Japan and Korea. Japanese fishermen also capture small tuna to be farmed to maturity, although the number of traditional artisanal fishermen has fallen in recent years as younger Japanese choose not to engage in such dangerous and difficult work.

The latest data show the spawning stock biomass of the Pacific bluefin, an indicator of the fishs ability to reproduce at a sustainable level, rising to about 28,000 metric tons in 2018 from 10,837 metric tons in 2010.

That is still less than half the estimate for 1995 of a spawning stock biomass of 62,784 metric tons. It puts the species at about 4.5% of the baseline level it would be at if there were no fishing at all, up from 4% several years ago.

Demand for bluefin tuna is such that any progress draws pressure for bigger catches. Last week, the Marine Stewardship Council granted certification for a Japanese fishery's Atlantic bluefin, over conservationists' objections that such a move might hinder its long-term recovery.

In 2019, Japan reported a catch of 3,757 tons of smaller tuna and 5,132 of larger tuna, according to documents prepared for the online meeting. To comply with its limits, it transferred 250 tons of its catch quota for smaller Pacific bluefin to its limit for the larger ones, according to documents prepared for this week's online conference.

The proposal to raise its catch limits would enable Japanese fisheries to catch 801 more tons of smaller fish, which weigh less than 30 kilograms, per year and 976 more tons of larger ones.

A similar proposal was rejected last year.

A key issue is the unpredictability of each year's rate of recruitment," or reproduction for bluefin, among other factors. For this reason many experts favor a shift toward a more systematic method of managing fish catches that would use complex computer modeling to target specific objectives.

Pew and other conservation groups are promoting this approach, which has been adopted for managing southern bluefin tuna, another threatened species.

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Japan seeks to boost catch limits of prized bluefin tuna - Thehour.com

Graham Elders grand adventures led to the publication of a novella – SooToday

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"A Covid Odyssey" is a medical thriller and a heros journey about love and resilience in a world ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic

At seventeen, Dr. Graham Elder joined the Naval Reserves for many exhilarating adventures on the high seas.

His time in the Reserves afforded him a steady income to pay for his lengthy education.

As a student of McGill University for thirteen years, in his hometown of Montreal, he completed degrees in Physiotherapy, Medicine and Orthopaedic Surgery.

In early 2000, Elder was considering where his future might lead him.

A fateful decision to attend a career day event changed the course of his life.

The working climate for docs at that time was quite poor in Quebec and based on disincentives, says Elder.

The career event he attended was billed as a way to find work outside of the province.

It was there that he ran into a general surgeon who was in the class ahead of him at McGill University who had relocated to Sault Ste. Marie the previous year.

He said, come check it out, its got everything you love, says Elder.

My wife, Andrea, and I came for a recruitment tour and a few months later, we loaded up the trucks, two [young] kids, two dogs and moved to Beverly.

Although Elder jokingly references the motley Clampett family who moved to the big city after striking oil in their rural farm, the orthopedic surgeon and his family did the opposite, moving from a larger centre to a place rich in the great outdoors.

From a family perspective, they had no other connections to the Sault.

We had planned to stay a few years and then move on but, if you like the great outdoors and wonderful people, why would anyone leave such a marvellous city, he says.

Outside of work and making the most of the Saults natural surroundings, the orthopedic surgeon often found himself weaving bedtime tales and stories for his children.

Andrea pointed it out when the kids were younger. I would carry storylines through from night to night at bedtime. Apparently, my kids were quite convinced that my wife and I were of magically descended royalty, he laughs.

Having a few antique swords around the house for effect can be quite useful.

A decade ago, Elder turned one particular set of bedtime stories based on a character called Geekboy and his journey through the earths core into a trilogy that he self-published for his children as a Christmas gift.

That would be my first writing effort.

From that self-publishing experience, Elder caught the writing bug and decided to expand beyond stories for his children.

Being schooled in the French language up until his time at university, Elder realized that he could likely benefit from some writing assistance if he wanted to produce quality writing in English.

In 2015, Elder joined forces with his long-time medical school friend Laura Cody and launched a website [TwoDocsWriting.com], the name suggested by his wife.

Laura and I met on day one of medical school in 1991, he says.

I believe a great many friendships in life are based on the natural order of the alphabet.

Codys maiden name is Downs. Downs starts with D and Elder with E.

I caught the writing bug hard about 5 years ago when I turned 50. I was looking to open up my creative side after years of stuffing scientific facts into my brain, he says.

Laura and I had always remained the best of friends after medical school and with her pre-med degree in English literature from Notre Dame, she was the perfect match I expected her background as a forensic psychiatrist [a sub-specialty of psychiatry that is related to criminology] in New York would also add something interesting to the mix.

Fortunately for Elder, Cody also caught the writing bug around the period he did.

What was initially an obvious decision to incorporate their professional experiences and subject matter into their writing didnt happen.

It was in the beginning, but we completely ignored it. I think this came from wanting to get away from medicine and the work we were doing on a daily basis, says Elder.

The fruits of their writing partnership were published on their website.

The duo is nearing the completion of their first full-length novel, The Epsilon Project, the first in a trilogy.

The trilogy weve been working on for the past four years is dystopian, speculative fiction with some zombie-like action thrown in, he says.

Laura and I have teenage boys of the same age who were deeply immersed in The Walking Dead five years ago. We wanted to create something that would get them reading.

The writing and editing of The Epsilon Project have been a lengthy process for Elder and Cody with an expected publication in late 2021.

Elders latest publication, a new novella called A Covid Odyssey was a complete turnaround, leading him back to his roots in medicine and to a shorter writing format.

When the pandemic was declared, Elders writing partner was in the process of revising their first book in the trilogy, his hospital duties were temporarily shuttered and his wife away on business in Scotland.

Elder was left with time on his hands.

With elective surgery cancelled and my office closed, I found myself with five weeks of unexpected R & R. I had already written a blog about the [Sault Area Hospital] getting ready for the pandemic [A Hospital Goes to War] and decided to write a short fictional story for our website, he says.

Elder describes A Covid Odyssey as a medical thriller and a heros journey about love and resilience in a world ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition to fun escapism, Elder addresses some of the controversial topics of the day.

I wondered what would happen if my wife became infected with COVID-19, isolated in a foreign country with unknown levels of healthcare as she was in a small town thirty minutes north of Inverness.

Elder transferred the scenario to the U.S. and let his imagination run wild

This short story became a novella [which was] too long to post on our website.

So Elder decided to self-publish it in order to gain some experience in the industry, to potentially help inform the release of he and Codys full-length novel early next year.

With COVID on the loose, there was no travel and so it made sense to start from a place I knew in order to establish some authenticity from the outset, noting he used Sault Ste. Marie as the backdrop where the story begins.

I had to do some serious online research with Google to set up the rest of the story and make it believable.

The story centers on a Northern Ontario physician trying to get to his wife who becomes deathly ill with COVID-19 while attending a conference in Florida when the international borders close.

As her health spirals downward, the physician concocts a plan to bring her an experimental anti-viral drug that might save her life.

The challenge is that he needs to find a way to cross the Ontario/Michigan border and travel 2000 km through a pandemic American landscape to get to her.

Elder says the experience of publishing the novella was an incredible learning opportunity.

The feedback and support from [Sault Area Hospital] staff [and others who have read it] has been tremendous.

Releasing the novella in June was perfectly timed.

Information was changing so fast with COVID-19, I wanted to publish a book about the first wave, during the first wave.

The seeds of a sequel are already germinating in his imagination.

Did someone whisper Second Wave?

A Covid Odyssey is available in paperback on Amazon as well as in Epub format everywhere Epub books are sold (Amazon, Kobo, Apple books, Barnes and Noble).

To read more about Elders writing, visit TwoDocsWriting.com.

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Graham Elders grand adventures led to the publication of a novella - SooToday

The Need for a Network of Marine Protected Areas in the Southern Ocean – The Pew Charitable Trusts

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Overview

The Southern Ocean is one of the least-altered marine ecosystems on Earth. Encompassing 10% of the worlds ocean, this region surrounding Antarctica is home to thousands of species found nowhere else, from colossal squid and fish with antifreeze proteins in their blood, to bioluminescent worms and brilliantly hued starfish. It is also home to millions of predators, including penguins, seals, and whales that depend on large swarms of Antarctic krill, small crustaceans that form the base of a delicate food web. These waters are vital to the health of the planet, producing strong upwelling currents that carry critical nutrients north of the equator and, in concert with the rest of the ocean, play a role in regulating the climate.

Climate change and industrial fishing are fundamentally altering this unique region. Species highly evolved to the extreme environment are threatened as changing ocean and atmospheric conditions alter their habitat and disrupt the functions of the marine ecosystem. These impacts are compounded by fishing, which in the case of krill is increasingly concentrated in smaller areas, posing a threat to the animals that rely on this keystone speciesand to the biodiversity of the region.

To protect this spectacular region, The Pew Charitable Trusts and its partners are working with the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and its member governments to encourage the adoption of ecosystem-based fisheries management practices and the establishment of a network of largescale marine protected areas (MPAs) around Antarctica.

Marine protections in the Antarctic Peninsula would benefit the biodiversity of the region and its animals, such as this leopard seal, which is chasing a gentoo penguin. Paul Souders

Governments established CCAMLR in 1982 in response to the growing fleet of vessels around Antarctica that were catching krill, which are used to make omega-3 supplements, aquaculture feed, and as fishing bait. While prioritizing conservationparticularly when the best available science is limited or unclearCCAMLR allows limited fishing in some areas in accordance with its ecosystem-based management approach. The Antarctic krill fishery is now CCAMLRs largest. The international body, made up of 25 countries and the European Union, also oversees fisheries for Antarctic toothfish (Dissostichus mawsoni) and Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides), marketed as Chilean sea bass, that are spread around the continent.

Table 1

Source: The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, Fishery Reports (2018), https://www.ccamlr.org/en/publications/fishery-reports

Southern Ocean biodiversity is much more than just penguins; it also includes this giant feather star on the seafloor under the ice in East Antarctica. Laurent Ballesta Andromde Oceanology

The health of the Southern Ocean is driven by changes to the ocean itselfsuch as acidification1 and changes in sea-ice concentration and duration2and shifts on land that affect marine species, such as heat waves and extreme weather. These waters account for much of this centurys heat gain in the oceans upper water column, and warming is also occurring in the regions deep ocean.3 In response to these impacts, the threat of new and invasive species in the Southern Ocean is growing,4 while endemic marine species have experienced historic dieoffs5 and are shifting their ranges.6

Studies show that MPAs can help vulnerable ecosystems build resilience to climate change by eliminating additional stresses such as fishing.7 Having greater resilience means that ecosystems can better resist and recover from shocks associated with changing ocean conditions, responding to these disturbances while maintaining viable functions. Networks of MPAs also help species adapt to climate change, or the ability to evolve or change behaviors in relation to shifts in habitat conditions, by creating protected pathways for species migrations and range shifts.8 In addition, their relatively undisturbed waters provide a natural laboratory for studying how intact marine ecosystems react to a warming and acidifying ocean.

Marine protections in the Antarctic Peninsula would ensure enough krill was left for all the species that depend on it: seals, penguins, and whales, such as humpbacks that migrate to the Southern Ocean to feed. Michael Nolan

CCAMLRs primary mission is to protect the Southern Oceans diverse marine life. In 2002, CCAMLR became the first international body to commit to creating a network of MPAs, following recommendations from the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development. Nine years later, its member governments agreed to Conservation Measure 91-04,9 a framework for creating such a network, and identified nine planning domains for future MPAs.10 At the time, CCAMLR had already established a protected area for the South Orkney Islands southern shelf (2009), the worlds first high-seas MPA. In 2016, it created another MPAthe worlds largestin the Ross Sea region. Combined, the MPAs cover 2.2 million square kilometers. Additional proposals are under consideration for East Antarctica, the Weddell Sea, and the Antarctic Peninsula.

A network of MPAs would not only preserve connectivity among the Southern Oceans many unique ecosystems, allowing marine life to migrate between protected areas for breeding and foraging, but it would also significantly contribute to global ocean protection goals:

A huddle of young emperor penguins wait on the ice edge in East Antarctica. Laurent Ballesta Andromde Oceanology

The proposed East Antarctica marine protected area would safeguard 970,000 square kilometers of near-pristine ocean wilderness in the MacRobertson, Drygalski, and DUrville Sea-Mertz areas.17 Coastal currents, including the Prydz Bay Gyre, mingle with the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, supporting abundant marine life throughout the Southern Ocean.18 Penguins, seals, krill, and toothfish are among the many species that rely on this relatively unexplored, remote, and frigid habitat for survival.19

The proposed MPA is multiple use, with highly protected areas (toothfish no-take zones and a krill no-take zone) as well as areas for fishing in accordance with CCAMLR conservation measures. Targeted research fishing would be permitted in designated research zones within the MPA. Fishing also would be allowed to continue outside the protected area. From the 1972-73 fishing season until the 1994-95 season,20 fishing for Antarctic krill was common in the East Antarctic until all krill fishing became concentrated in the Antarctic Peninsula region. Commercial fishing is limited in the region now, with a small amount of fishing for Antarctic krill, as well as Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish. Establishing an East Antarctic MPA would safeguard critical habitat for its unique biodiversity.

Antarctic Peninsula waters are home to abundant marine life: orcas and humpback whales, fur and crabeater seals, as well as the approximately 1.5 million pairs of Adlie, chinstrap, and gentoo penguins that nest and forage here.23 The fishery for Antarctic krill focuses its operations in this area, overlapping with predators that rely on swarms of krill as a primary food source.24 As temperatures continue to rise, sea icehabitat for penguins, seals, and other speciesis shrinking.25 Krill also rely on sea ice for breeding, and juveniles feed off dense seasonal algae that grow beneath it. Research shows that cumulative stresses of climate change and concentrated fishing are already having negative impacts on the regions food web.26

The Antarctic Peninsula (Domain 1) Marine Protected Area proposal includes a General Protection Zone27 that covers two biologically rich areasthe Bransfield and Gerlache Straitsand would prohibit krill fishing in the coastal foraging ranges of Antarctic predators. It also protects a part of the Bellingshausen Sea that is an important spawning and nursery area for krill, and other ecologically significant areas for commercially valuable fish species. The Krill Fishing Zone would allow for commercial krill fishing for member nations, managed under CCAMLRs conservation measures. CCAMLR is working to advance ecosystem-based fisheries management to ensure the long-term survival of the fishery and protect the numerous species that depend on Antarctic krill.

CCAMLR is considering a proposal to create a marine reserve in the Weddell Sea covering more than 2.2 million square kilometers.30 This span of the Southern Ocean is a remote, ice-covered coastal sea with a unique habitat known for its outstanding biodiversity, including Antarctic petrels, emperor and Adlie penguins, and multiple species of seals and whales.31 Far below the sea ice, the nutrient-rich seafloor (benthic) ecosystems form key habitat for an array of creatures found nowhere else on Earth, such as glass sponges and cold-water corals.32

The proposed Weddell Sea MPA contains three zones. The General Protection Zone would be closed to commercial fishing to maintain the health of this ecosystem, protect biodiversity, boost climate resilience, as well as support research and monitoring to improve understanding of the climate and human impacts on Antarctic ecosystems. The Fisheries Research Zone allows for clearly defined research activities, aimed at informing the science-based management of the regions Antarctic toothfish stock. This includes a better understanding of population structure and life history, biological parameters, and ecology. Part of this zone will remain unfished and will serve as a scientific reference area for analyzing the wider ecosystem effects of fishing. The Special Protection Zone prohibits all fishing in order to protect multiple nesting sites for bottom-dwelling fish and unique, rare, or endemic habitats, especially in the shelf area where rich sponge communities exist. This zone also allows scientists the opportunity to monitor the impacts of natural variability and long-term changes on Antarctic marine living resources.

A Weddell seal pup plays hide and seek beneath the East Antarctic ice sheet. These seals can be found in the three current MPA proposals in the Southern Ocean. Laurent Ballesta Andromde Oceanology

CCAMLR MPA Planning Domain 9 (Bellingshausen and Amundsen Seas) is the only area in the Southern Ocean that does not have an MPA designated or proposed within its boundaries. Additionally, the regions between the national MPAs in Domains 4, 5, and 6 can be further protected by a CCAMLR MPA that increases connectivity between these critical habitats.

To create a true network of MPAs and deliver the scientifically supported conservation and resilience benefits of an MPA network, CCAMLR member nations should develop MPA proposals within these regions. Collaboration between CCAMLR member nations, stakeholders, scientists, and industry to identify areas of ecological importance within these domains will help CCAMLR meet its goal of creating a robust network of MPAs in the Southern Ocean.

Creating a network of MPAs in the Southern Ocean would exemplify global cooperation in the face of increasing environmental challenges. After establishing the worlds only high seas MPAs in the South Orkney Islands southern shelf and the Ross Sea, CCAMLR can achieve this goal by also designating MPAs in the Weddell Sea, East Antarctic, and Antarctic Peninsula (Domain 1) and developing additional protections for the Domain 9 and sub-Antarctic regions.

An ice octopus skims the seafloor life in East Antarctica, searching for food. Laurent Ballesta Andromde Oceanology

Krill form the base of the Southern Ocean food web. Education Images

A minke whale, one of many species that feed on krill in Antarctic waters, is about to breach the surface. ekvals

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The Need for a Network of Marine Protected Areas in the Southern Ocean - The Pew Charitable Trusts