US Infections Pass 3 Million | Brazil's President Has COVID-19

Smart news for busy people [presidential daily brief]( *Podcast available from 8 am et Wednesday, July 08, 2020 Sponsored by Important 1 1 [With 3M US Cases, Trump Triggers WHO Exit]( As the U.S. passed the grim milestone of 3 million known coronavirus infections, President Donald Trump took action. His administration submitted notice that the U.S. will withdraw from the World Health Organization, which Trump accuses of minimizing the pandemic’s severity, a year from now. He also urged school systems to reopen as soon as possible, despite evidence that reopening could worsen surging U.S. outbreaks. Among the worst hit states are Texas, California and Florida, which by itself has 56 intensive care units overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients and another 35 nearing capacity. Follow OZY’s [pandemic coverage](. SOURCES: [Fox News]( / [NYT]( / [CNN]( 2 2 [Virus Skeptic Bolsonaro Has COVID-19]( Fourth time’s the charm. After testing negative three times, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro confirmed he has what he’s referred to as the “little flu.” While 65,000 Brazilians have died of COVID-19, Bolsonaro’s downplayed the [seriousness of the epidemic]( and scorned public health measures like mask-wearing. At 65, he’s considered high risk, but he says he’ll self-medicate with hydroxychloroquine, championed by President Trump but scientifically unproven against coronavirus. The U.S. ambassador to Brazil is now self-quarantining, given that Bolsonaro attended an Embassy Fourth of July party with lax mask-wearing and social distancing. SOURCES: [BBC]( / [Vox]( 3 3 [Protest Song Banned in Hong Kong Schools]( It contains “strong political messages.” Therefore, under the national security law China has imposed on Hong Kong, schools will no longer let students sing “Glory to Hong Kong.” Banning the anthem of pro-democracy protests coincides with the establishment of Beijing’s national security office in a Hong Kong hotel, further cementing the end of the semi-autonomous territory’s civil freedoms. The office will oversee enforcement of the week-old law, which yesterday prompted Microsoft and Zoom to join Twitter, Google and Facebook in denying user data requests from territorial authorities. [OZY’s Butterfly Effect]( links U.S. electoral politics to Beijing’s impunity. SOURCES: [Al Jazeera]( / [The Guardian]( / [AFP]( 4 4 [FBI Director Calls China 'Greatest Threat']( FBI Director Christopher Wray called China America’s “greatest long-term threat” on [various security and economic fronts](, accounting for nearly half of his agency’s 5,000 active counterintelligence cases. Speaking at a Washington, D.C., think tank Tuesday, Wray said Chinese hackers are working to thwart U.S. researchers’ progress against COVID-19, stealing Americans’ personal data and threatening family members of Chinese dissidents abroad to intimidate them into returning home. The aim? “To become the world’s only superpower by any means necessary.” As part of America’s response, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is weighing a ban on China-based video app TikTok. SOURCES: [BBC]( / [The Guardian]( / [CNN]( 5 5 [Also Important ...]( [A “killing field” with 180 bodies]( has been found in Burkina Faso. The U.S. Supreme Court has confirmed that Chief Justice John Roberts, who has a history of seizures, [fell and injured his head]( while walking June 21. And Australia’s Alex “Chumpy” Pullin, a two-time world champion snowboarder, has [died while spearfishing]( on Queensland’s Gold Coast. Coronavirus update: After receiving a warning from experts, the World Health Organization says [evidence is emerging of airborne transmission](. Stay Safe and Fight On: Hit the streets for justice, but keep yourself and others safe with this breathable two-ply cotton mask. You can wash and reuse this mask, making a statement each time you put it on. Best of all, 100 percent of profits go to your choice of racial justice organization. Get it from the [OZY store]( today. 6 [time to learn]( [6 Presidents Out of Control?]( Join an acclaimed law professor, Paul Rosenzweig, for a timely look at what happens when U.S. presidents are accused of abusing their power. OZY is excited to partner with [The Great Courses Plus]( to give you a free month to take classes like [Investigating American Presidents]( from the comfort of your own home. Sign up through OZY today for [one free month](. SOURCES: [The Great Courses Plus]( Intriguing 1 [1 Niece: Trump Scammed Way Into Wharton]( It’s a “book of falsehoods.” That’s how the White House responded to allegations in a new book by presidential niece Mary Trump. Too Much and Never Enough says President Trump paid a proxy to take the SAT test that got him into the prestigious Wharton School — describing it as one example in a pattern of cheating that defines her uncle’s character. The author, who is also a clinical psychologist, writes that emotional abuse heaped on Donald by his father, Fred Trump Sr., led to the development of a “sociopath.” Check out OZY’s look at how Trump’s words [translate to actions](. SOURCES: [NY Post]( / [The Hill]( / [Business Insider]( 2 [2 Facebook Hate Speech Meeting a Bust]( “We’re on a journey.” That was the sense that anti-hate speech activists got from Tuesday’s meeting with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. “That’s not good enough,” said Anti-Defamation League President Jonathan Greenblatt, who was among civil rights leaders seeking to convince Facebook to block posts inciting hate and violence. While the platform claims it removes 89 percent of such content, that did little to convince the NAACP, Color of Change and other groups to drop their #StopHateForProfit boycott that’s spurred a host of major companies to stop buying Facebook ads. Check out OZY’s exploration of [winning civil rights strategies](. SOURCES: [The Verge]( / [LA Times]( 3 [3 Marmots Threaten Actual Plague in China]( In case you haven’t felt like you were living in the Middle Ages, there’s news from Inner Mongolia. Marmots are suspected of breeding none other than the bubonic plague in the city of Bayannur, 550 miles northwest of Beijing. The World Health Organization says it’s monitoring reports that a herdsman contracted the bacterial infection, which causes fever, headaches and swollen lymph nodes — and killed 50 million people during the [Black Death]( in the 14th century. Luckily, it’s spread by animals and fleas, not humans, and antibiotics can cure it if it’s caught early. SOURCES: [Vice]( / [Live Science]( 4 [4 Artists Crowded Out By Pot Growers]( Their passions have gone up in smoke. Artists who supported marijuana’s legalization are now suffering from that effort. They thought “that we could both benefit,” says the founder of an Oakland, California, art collective. But indoor pot growers are monopolizing industrial space that once provided affordable urban art studios, [OZY reports](. Now creative folks are having to move outside of cities where they can afford space. Governments are struggling to recognize the problem and provide regulatory cushioning for the industry’s impacts, like maybe taking a fraction of their billions in cannabis tax revenue to support art organizations. SOURCES: [OZY]( 5 [5 Is Mahomes' Contract Really the Biggest?]( The devil may be in the subparagraphs. The sporting world has oohed and aahed over Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes getting the biggest contract in sports history this week. But close examination of the wording reveals some very large loopholes in the $503 million, 10-year extension. Most glaring are the mysterious “guarantee mechanisms” that must be triggered to earn $477 million of that contract, notes sportswriter Dan Gartland. That could mean it’s not quite so historic, even though the 24-year-old Super Bowl MVP is probably worth every penny. OZY looks back at [how a punter changed the NFL forever](. SOURCES: [SI]( / [The Ringer]( caught up? now vault ahead ... Around the World [Jazz-Turned-Pop Star Beats Cape Verdean Drum]( Singer Mayra Andrade has reinvented herself to reach a new audience. [READ NOW]( OZY Media, 800 West El Camino Mountain View, California 94040 This email was sent to {EMAIL} [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Privacy Policy](