Thursday morning news - April 16, 2020

White House to announce new guidance to begin reopening economy » The Trump administration will announce new guidance today to begin strategically reopening the country. The president will first hold a conference call with governors and after that, he will unveil the new guidelines to the public. 

Vice President Mike Pence said a slow return to normalcy will not happen at the same pace for everyone. 

PENCE: There will be areas of the county that will require continued mitigation, strong efforts. And there will be other areas of the country that will be given guidance for greater flexibility. 

The United States has about 640,000 confirmed cases and nearly 30,000 deaths thus far. But the nation, as a whole, is showing progress and President Trump said the crisis has peaked. 

Retail, manufacturing plunge in U.S. » The push to begin the slow process of nursing the U.S. economy back to life comes as new data once again affirms just how hard the pandemic is hitting the economy.

With lockdowns bringing factories to a halt, American industrial output shriveled in March. It saw the steepest dropoff since the United States demobilized at the end of World War II. And retail sales fell by an unprecedented 8.7 percent. April numbers are expected to be even worse.

As government relief kicks in, Trump threatens to test executive powers and adjourn Congress » But government relief efforts are starting to kick in. The government began issuing one-time payments this week to tens of millions of people. As part of its $2.2 trillion relief package.

President Trump said Wednesday that many employers are getting relief through the Paycheck Protection Program. 

TRUMP: All of that money is being distributed to small businesses. They’re giving it to their employees. It’s keeping them ready, viable, so that when we open. And now it’s been so good that it’s almost depleted, and we want to replenish it. 

But he said Democrats are holding up efforts to add new funding. 

He also complained that Democrats are still blocking nominees, preventing him from filling judicial vacancies and other posts that are critical amidst a national emergency. That includes positions in the Department of Agriculture that he said are key to protecting the country’s food supply. 

He said Congress must act, or it should adjourn. 

TRUMP: If the House will not agree to that adjournment, I will exercise my constitutional authority to adjourn both chambers of Congress. 

An adjournment would allow the president to make recess appointments. Though he acknowledged the courts would almost certainly have the final say.

Documents show China initially hid coronavirus » A new report claims China hid the coronavirus outbreak from the public for nearly a week at a critical early stage in its spread. WORLD Radio’s Kristen Flavin has more. 

KRISTEN FLAVIN, REPORTER: Chinese officials secretly determined on January 13th that they were likely facing a new pandemic.

In the six days that followed, the city of Wuhan hosted a mass banquet for tens of thousands of people and millions began traveling for Lunar New Year celebrations.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned the public on the seventh day, January 20th. But by that time, thousands of people had been infected. That according to documents obtained by the Associated Press and expert estimates based on infection data.

Internal bulletins also show that for a span of nearly two weeks, the Chinese government did not register any cases from local officials. But during that time, hundreds of patients were appearing in hospitals across the country.

Around the same time, the government punished eight doctors for—quote—“rumor-mongering” when they issued warnings about the virus.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin. 

Trump decision to halt funding to WHO draws strong global reaction » President Trump’s decision on Tuesday to freeze funding for the World Health Organization is drawing strong reactions around the world. 

The EU’s top foreign policy official, Josep Borrell, said—quoting here—“There is no reason justifying this move at a moment when their efforts are needed more than ever.” 

But Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison backed up President Trump’s complaints about the WHO stance toward China. 

MORRISON: I sympathize with his criticisms and I’ve made a few of my own. I mean, we called this thing weeks before the WHO. If we had relied on their advice, then I suspect we would be suffering the same fate that many other countries currently are. 

But he said the WHO does a lot of important work.” And he added, “We are not going to throw the baby out with the bathwater here.”

Other allies say holding the WHO accountable for its failings is justified, but now is not the time.

WHO director Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus said he regrets President Trump’s decision, while conceding his organization is not above reproach.

GHEBREYESUS: No doubt, areas for improvement will be identified, and there will be lessons for all of us to learn. But for now, our focus, my focus, is on stopping this virus and saving lives.

The United States accounts for about 15 percent of the WHO’s funding. 

U.S. government warns of North Korea cyber threat » The U.S. government is warning of increasing cyber threats out of North Korea. WORLD’s Leigh Jones has that story.

LEIGH JONES, REPORTER: The FBI, along with the departments of State, Treasury, and Homeland Security issued a joint alert Wednesday. 

The agencies warned that under pressure from economic sanctions, North Korea is leaning on cyber crimes to steal money to fund it weapons programs.

In particular, it said North Korean cyber hacking poses a—quote— “significant threat to the integrity and stability of the international financial system.”

It went on to warn that the country also “has the capability to disrupt U.S. critical infrastructure.”

The agencies called on the “international community, network defenders, and the public to stay vigilant and to work together” to defend against cyber threats from North Korea.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Leigh Jones.

(Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via AP) In this Tuesday, March 10, 2020, photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping talks by video with patients and medical workers at the Huoshenshan Hospital in Wuhan in central China’s Hubei Province. 

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