COVID-19: Need-to-Know News from
the USA
Red and Blue America Aren’t Experiencing the Same Pandemic
Why It Matters: Ron Brownstein explains how the coronavirus outbreak is unfolding very differently in Republican- and Democratic-leaning parts of the United States: “That disconnect is already shaping, even distorting, the nation’s response to this unprecedented challenge — and it could determine the pandemic’s ultimate political consequences as well.”
U.S., China Trade Blame for Coronavirus, Hampering Global Economy Rescue
The Wall Street Journal
Why It Matters: The Wall Street Journal details how the United States and China worked together during the 2008 global financial crisis to help get the global economy going again but are not doing the same with this crisis. It points out an interesting twist: “The response to the global financial crisis represented a high-water mark in economic relations between the U.S. and China, as the two nations spent massively to pull the world out of recession. But the recovery also put in motion forces that would eventually fracture the relationship.”
‘It’s a Wreck’: 3.3 Million File Unemployment Claims as Economy Comes Apart
The New York Times
Why It Matters: This New York Times front page story about the biggest surge in jobless claims in U.S. history — 3.3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week — is accompanied by a first-ever visual. The Times devoted the whole sixth column of the front page to a graphic showing the unemployment spike. See it here.