Coronavirus US: bailout funding remains in limbo – live | The Guardian – on August 3, 2020 at 11:08 am

US reported record 1.87m new Covid-19 cases in JulyAnti-abortion centers received at least $4m from bailout fundsMicrosoft pursues TikTok deal as Pompeo says Trump will take actionSign up to our First Thing newsletter 12.08pm BST The timetable may have slipped a little, but we are expecting Joe Biden to announce his VP pick possibly as soon as this week, maybe next week – and Annie Linskey has written about the situation for the Washington Post this morning.It’s a fascinating piece looking at how the wide field and lengthy selection process has, as she puts it, allowed “Trump’s campaign an opening to dig up dirt and launch attacks on potential rivals.”The increasing nastiness is fueled by a sense, even among Biden’s closest advisers, that Biden is entering the final phase of the search without a clear favorite. Rather than a traditional “shortlist” of three candidates, people close to the process expect him to interview five or six finalists for the position.Several people interviewed said the delay has intensified currents, many of them sexist, that have been swirling for weeks. The resulting backbiting risks inflaming divisions within the party that complicated the 2016 campaign — but that Biden has worked to coalesce since locking down the nomination in the spring. 11.57am BST The coronavirus pandemic may have disrupted campaigning for November’s election, and it has also had an impact on activist groups trying to raise awareness in the US of the climate emergency gripping the planet. The US is currently experiencing the two extremes of Hurricane Isaias on the east coast, and raging wildfires on the west coast.Lauren Aratani has written for us today about how young activists are adapting their tactics to get the message across during a pandemic and at a time when the Black Lives Matter protest movements have heightened awareness of racial injustices. Related: With big rallies cancelled, young climate activists are adapting election tactics Continue reading…

• US reported record 1.87m new Covid-19 cases in July
• Anti-abortion centers received at least $4m from bailout funds
• Microsoft pursues TikTok deal as Pompeo says Trump will take action
• Sign up to our First Thing newsletter

12.08pm BST

The timetable may have slipped a little, but we are expecting Joe Biden to announce his VP pick possibly as soon as this week, maybe next week – and Annie Linskey has written about the situation for the Washington Post this morning.

It’s a fascinating piece looking at how the wide field and lengthy selection process has, as she puts it, allowed “Trump’s campaign an opening to dig up dirt and launch attacks on potential rivals.”

The increasing nastiness is fueled by a sense, even among Biden’s closest advisers, that Biden is entering the final phase of the search without a clear favorite. Rather than a traditional “shortlist” of three candidates, people close to the process expect him to interview five or six finalists for the position.

Several people interviewed said the delay has intensified currents, many of them sexist, that have been swirling for weeks. The resulting backbiting risks inflaming divisions within the party that complicated the 2016 campaign — but that Biden has worked to coalesce since locking down the nomination in the spring.

11.57am BST

The coronavirus pandemic may have disrupted campaigning for November’s election, and it has also had an impact on activist groups trying to raise awareness in the US of the climate emergency gripping the planet. The US is currently experiencing the two extremes of Hurricane Isaias on the east coast, and raging wildfires on the west coast.

Lauren Aratani has written for us today about how young activists are adapting their tactics to get the message across during a pandemic and at a time when the Black Lives Matter protest movements have heightened awareness of racial injustices.

Related: With big rallies cancelled, young climate activists are adapting election tactics

Continue reading…