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Monday, July 13

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FLORIDA SHATTERS GRIM RECORD... Florida has shattered the national record for the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases as the U.S. struggles with the world's worst outbreak. Democratic officials called for Houston to lock down again as deaths rise in the South and West. Stay informed with our live updates here. [HuffPost]

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...WHILE NYC REPORTS SOME GOOD NEWS New York City recorded no new deaths from coronavirus in a 24-hour period for the first time since March 13. Lawmakers hailed the milestone but warned the pandemic wasn't over. “New Yorkers have been the hero of this story, going above and beyond to keep each other safe,” a City Hall spokesperson said. [HuffPost]

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MUELLER SPEAKS! Former FBI director and special counsel Robert Mueller spoke out in a rare op-ed about President Donald Trump's commutation of former campaign adviser Robert Stone's prison sentence. Stone "remains a convicted felon, and rightly so,” Mueller wrote in the Washington Post. Trump apologist Lindsey Graham, who is leading a Senate election-year effort to discredit Mueller's probe into Russian interference in 2016, responded by saying he'd allow Mueller to testify before his committee. [HuffPost]

• I am a mom who desperately wants schools to reopen. But Trump doesn't get my vote.
• Four positive food trends that could lead to long-lasting change.
• Is it safe to try on clothes at stores during the pandemic?
• Arizona and Texas officials order morgue trucks.
• Vaccine could be introduced in U.K. "in first half of next year," scientist says.
• What you need to know about immunity to COVID-19.
• How Sweden and Portugal went from pandemic role models to record infections.
• Surge in people buying "pandemic puppies" in U.K. prompts fears over animal welfare.
• I'm an international student and I'm devastated by ICE's new guidelines.

Get the latest coronavirus updates on our dedicated page

FIRE ON WARSHIP BLAZES FOR HOURS A fire onboard a U.S. warship docked at Naval Base San Diego raged for hours, sending 21 people to the hospital with injuries and requiring the relocation of two other vessels nearby. A Navy spokesperson said there was no immediate evidence of foul play. [HuffPost]

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SURGEON GENERAL ON THE DEFENSE U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams tried to walk back his past advice to the public not to wear face masks as the pandemic took off. He likened it to absurd health remedies from the past, like how "once upon a time, we prescribed cigarettes for asthmatics." Meanwhile, the White House has stepped up attacks on Dr. Anthony Fauci, who continues raising alarm about rising U.S. infections. [HuffPost]

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TRUMP REPORTEDLY WANTED TO 'SELL' PUERTO RICO After Puerto Rico was pummeled by Hurricane Maria, Trump asked if there was an option of "divesting" or "selling" the island, his former head of homeland security told The New York Times. Elaine Duke said Trump approached the situation of a devastated Puerto Rico as "a businessman." [HuffPost]

WHAT'S BREWING

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KELLY PRESTON DEAD AT 57 Actress Kelly Preston died Sunday from breast cancer, her family said. “She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many,” her husband John Travolta wrote on Instagram. Tributes to the "Jerry Maguire" actress began pouring in. [HuffPost]

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VIDEO SHOWS PENNSYLVANIA COP USING KNEE ON MAN'S NECK Protesters are demanding the suspension of officers seen in a video restraining a man by placing a knee on his neck in Allentown, Pennsylvania. The department released its use of force policy earlier this month, five weeks after a white Minneapolis police officer put his knee on George Floyd’s neck for several minutes. [AP]

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ATLANTA BRAVES TO KEEP NAME The Atlanta Braves will keep their nickname but will reevaluate the "tomahawk chop" arm gesture, the baseball club said in an email. The team's statement comes as reports say the Washington NFL team will announce today that it's retiring the "Redskins" name. [HuffPost]

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TRUMP WADES BACK INTO THE 'SWAMP' Trump spent his Friday evening at a rich donor's oceanfront mansion to collect an estimated $10 million, five years after claiming he didn't want rich donors' money. A HuffPost analysis of Federal Election Commission data shows many large-dollar donors. [HuffPost]

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DEVOS: CDC GUIDELINES 'FLEXIBLE' Education Secretary Betsy DeVos defended her boss' threat to withhold funds from schools that refuse to reopen amid the pandemic. She refused to say whether her department would follow federal safety health guidelines for reopening, saying the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention measures like hand washing and mask wearing "are not hard rules." [HuffPost]

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AMERICA ISN'T READY TO BRING BACK SPORTS Professional sports leagues have spent months crafting plans to resume or begin their seasons, but now they're running up against the reality of America's failed response to the virus. With millions of dollars at stake, public health experts and players are asking whether sports leagues should be trying to return at all. [HuffPost]

• I’m a Black doctor. I wear my scrubs everywhere now.
• Steve Martin writes sweet tribute to Carl Reiner.
• China's actions against Uighur Muslims are less about births, more about control. 
• How the Biosphere 2 lockdown experiment went horribly wrong.
• Black women helped create house music but have been left out of the credits.
• Quitting sex with the best thing I ever did for myself.
• Working from home should be idyllic, but why are so many of us desperate to get back to our desks?

BEFORE YOU GO