August 3, 2020

President Trump escalates his attacks on his own public-health officials, calling Deborah Birx’s warning about widespread coronavirus transmission “pathetic” and lashing out at Fauci, CNN, China and the Democrats in a wide-ranging rant. Fauci rushes to defend Birx, saying she was referring to “insidious” spread through asymptomatic carriers. He tells a Harvard forum that states seeing surges should consider reimposing some lockdown measures, and warns the U.S. needs to bring daily cases down to 10,000 before the fall or face “a really bad situation.” Trump counters that a nationwide lockdown would “inflict more harm than it would prevent,” a position the WHO reinforces by warning there may never be a “silver bullet” for COVID-19.

Mask rules tighten in new settings. South Carolina’s governor orders everyone to wear face masks inside restaurants starting that evening. A Delta flight returns to the gate after two passengers refuse to wear masks, and the airline says it has banned at least 120 passengers for noncompliance. The WHO chief calls mask-wearing “an act of solidarity.” Meanwhile, Henry Ford Health defends its hydroxychloroquine study against critics, saying it is “saddened” by the drug’s politicization, and NPR reports that religious groups received $6-10 billion in COVID-19 relief funds, with more than 400 evangelical churches and ministries each receiving at least $1 million in forgivable loans.