10 things you need to know today: May 9, 2020

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1. Unemployment rate climbs to 14.7 percent
2. Watchdog finds 'grounds to believe' vaccine doctor's ouster was retaliation
3. Pence staffer tests positive for coronavirus
4. Demonstrators protest handling of Ahmaud Arbery case
5. U.S. tightens restrictions on visas for Chinese journalists
6. IRS sets deadline to provide direct deposit info for stimulus checks
7. Venezuela charges captured former U.S. soldiers with terrorism
8. China's Xi offers to help Kim, North Korea battle coronavirus
9. Judge declines to dismiss charges against Lori Loughlin
10. Roy Horn of Siegfried & Roy dies of coronavirus at 75

published 9 May 2020

1. Unemployment rate climbs to 14.7 percent

The Labor Department on Friday said that 20.5 million jobs were lost in April, and the unemployment rate climbed to 14.7 percent. The staggering report showed that a decade of job gains were wiped out in just one month. The report also notes that if it included workers classified as furloughed or temporarily laid off, "the overall unemployment rate would have been almost 5 percentage points higher than reported." The Labor Department's March report showed the unemployment rate climbing to 4.4 percent, from 3.5 percent in February. Weekly data previously showed that more than 33 million Americans have filed initial jobless claims over the course of seven weeks, a number that's equivalent to about 21 percent of the labor force. The ADP National Employment Report also said earlier this week that 20.2 million private sector jobs were lost from March to April.

The Office of Special Counsel is recommending that ousted vaccine official Dr. Rick Bright be reinstated while it investigates his case, his lawyers announced Friday. Bright, while leading coronavirus vaccine development, was recently removed from his position as the director of the Department of Health and Human Services' Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, and he alleges it was because he insisted congressional funding not go toward "drugs, vaccines, and other technologies that lack scientific merit." Bright's lawyers said the Office of Special Counsel has determined there are "reasonable grounds to believe" his firing was retaliation. The federal watchdog also recommended he be reinstated for 45 days to give the office "sufficient time to complete its investigation of Bright's allegations."

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Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday. Pence's flight to Iowa was held up for about an hour after Katie Miller, also the wife of White House adviser Stephen Miller, tested positive for the coronavirus. Miller was not on the flight, "but the concern was other people being in contact" with her, writes CNN. Miller herself confirmed her positive test to NBC News. On Thursday, a personal valet to President Trump tested positive for COVID-19. The White House said Trump has since tested negative. Trump was reportedly "lava level mad" about the positive test. Trump, Pence, and key staffers are now being tested for COVID-19 every day.

Protestors across the country called attention to and demanded further action in the case of Ahmaud Arbery, who was shot to death while jogging through his Georgia neighborhood in February. Gregory McMichael, 64, and his son Travis McMichael, 34, were arrested on Thursday in the case and charged with murder, but demonstrators said the arrests took too long. The shooting was captured on video. Many seeking to draw attention to the case went on 2.23-mile runs, dedicating the jogs to Arbery's 26th birthday with the hashtags #IRunWithMaud and #BlackLivesMatter. The socially-distant form of protest included prominent voices like New Orleans Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins. A crowd of protesters also gathered in front of the Glynn County Courthouse.

The Department of Homeland Security said Friday the United States will shorten the visa length for Chinese journalists working for non-American news outlets to 90 days. Previously, journalists with Chinese passports were granted open-ended visas. They can apply for extensions, but renewed visas will also last just 90 days. It's the latest development in a media war between Washington and Beijing that has intensified during the coronavirus pandemic. American officials said the rules were meant to counterbalance the "suppression of independent journalism" in China, whose government expelled journalists from prominent U.S. publications in March. Before that, the U.S. reduced the number of Chinese citizens employed by several state-controlled Chinese news organizations allowed to work in the country. The 90-day limit won't apply to reporters from Hong Kong, Macao, or to mainland Chinese citizens who hold green cards.

The Internal Revenue Service on Friday urged people who qualify for a one-time $1,200 coronavirus stimulus payment to provide their direct deposit information by Wednesday, May 13 to receive the money more quickly. People will still be able to receive the funds after the deadline, but it will come in the form of a paper check that will take much longer to arrive. The IRS set up the "Get My Payment" tool, which allows taxpayers to track the status of their stimulus check and input bank account information to receive their money via direct deposit. Those who aren't required to file a tax return also have access to a web tool allowing them to receive their payment quickly and directly through their bank account.

Venezuela on Friday charged two former United States soldiers, Luke Denman and Airan Berry, with "terrorism, conspiracy, illicit trafficking of weapons of war and (criminal) association" for allegedly participating in a botched attempt to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. They could face 25 to 30 years in prison. Venezuela's Prosecutor General Tarek William Saab said the country has also requested an international arrest warrant for the capture of Jordan Goudreau, a U.S. Army veteran who runs a Florida-based company that reportedly offers paid strategic services. Goudreau has said he organized the Venezuela operation. Maduro has accused President Trump of being behind the incursion, an allegation Trump has rejected.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a letter to North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un offering to help North Korea's fight against the coronavirus, Chinese state media said Saturday. Kim had reportedly sent Xi a letter congratulating China on its success handling its own outbreak. In his response, Xi reportedly said he was concerned for the health of the North Korean citizenry. Pyongyang maintains there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country, a claim that has drawn scrutiny from the international community. BBC notes that China's offer for help follows a similar one from the U.S., which Pyongyang has been slow to accept.

The federal judge overseeing the prosecution of Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli, among others, refused to dismiss their charges of bribery on Friday, meaning their October trial is set to continue as scheduled. The actress and designer were two of the parents charged in "Operation Varsity Blues," in which the FBI accused wealthy parents of paying large sums of money to secure spots at competitive universities for their children. The defense claimed investigators fabricated evidence and pressured the scheme's mastermind, Rick Singer, into lying. Loughlin and Giannulli have said they believed their payments totaling $500,000 were legitimate donations. Actress Felicity Huffman already served her nearly two week sentence after pleading guilty in the case.

Roy Horn, one-half of the duo Siegfried & Roy, died Friday of complications from the coronavirus at a Las Vegas hospital, his publicist said. He was 75. Horn and Siegfried Fischbacher, both natives of Germany, began their well-known animal and magic act in Europe before becoming prolific performers in Las Vegas for many years. The illusionists' production ended in 2003 after Horn was attacked on stage by a white tiger, causing severe injuries, though he was eventually able to walk again, allowing the pair to reunite for a comeback charity performance in 2009. Off the stage, Siegfried and Roy gained recognition for their efforts to save white tigers and white lions from extinction. In reaction to Horn's death, Fischbacher said the "world has lost one of the greats of magic, but I have lost my best friend."

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.