10 things you need to know today: June 23, 2020

1. Trump extends, expands visa restrictions

President Trump issued a proclamation on Monday temporarily suspending a variety of work visas and barring more than 500,000 foreigners from entering the United States. The visas that will be affected include H-1Bs used by highly skilled foreign engineers. Tech giants including Amazon, Uber, Google parent Alphabet, and Twitter called the move "unbelievably bad policy" that will hurt the economic recovery. The restrictions are the latest Trump has pushed to make fewer visas available to would-be immigrants as Americans face historically high unemployment due to the coronavirus crisis. An April immigration proclamation targeting people overseas trying to get into the U.S. legally had been set to expire, but the new policy will extend and expand it until the end of the year.

The Associated Press Business Insider

2. 29 states, territories post rising coronavirus infection rates

Nine states reported record coronavirus infection rates on Monday, with 29 states and U.S. territories posting an increase in their rolling average of new cases. The number of new cases nationally returned to 30,000 per day last weekend after hovering around 20,000 daily new cases for weeks. The White House last week said the number of new infections was stabilizing, and it has attributed local spikes to increased testing, although as testing has increased so has the rate of tests coming back positive. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said the rising infection rates were "unacceptable," but that new lockdowns should be viewed as a last resort. As of early Tuesday, the U.S. had recorded more than 2.3 million cases and 120,402 deaths.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The Washington Post The Hill

3. 2 Trump campaign workers who attended rally test positive for COVID-19

Two members of President Trump's campaign advance team who attended his Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally on Saturday have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the campaign said Monday. Six other members of the team tested positive before the event, so they didn't attend; the latest two were tested as a precaution before flying home. "These staff members attended the rally but were wearing masks during the entire event," said Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh. "Upon the positive tests, the campaign immediately activated established quarantine and contact tracing protocols." NBC News reported that campaign and law enforcement officials expect more positive tests among people connected to the rally.

CNBC

4. Mourners pay respects to Rayshard Brooks ahead of funeral

Mourners filed past the casket of Rayshard Brooks on Monday, paying their respects to a black man killed by a white Atlanta police officer after a struggle outside a Wendy's restaurant 10 days ago. All of the mourners wore masks as a precaution against spreading the coronavirus. Brooks' funeral is Tuesday at Ebenezer Baptist Church, the Atlanta church where the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached. A white officer fatally shot Brooks in the back as he fled a DUI arrest. His death came amid ongoing protests over the killing of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, in Minneapolis police custody about two weeks earlier. Latoia Sparks was one of the first in line at Brooks' memorial Monday, bringing her 12-year-old daughter, "because this is history. I want to honor him."

Reuters

5. Saudi Arabia to severely limit hajj

Saudi Arabia announced Monday that the annual hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, which usually draws around two million people from around the world, will be limited to people already living in the kingdom because of the coronavirus pandemic. It's unclear how many people will be permitted. Saudi Arabia, which cited the lack of a coronavirus vaccine and the risks of gathering in large crowds as the reason behind the decision, has one of the highest infection rates in the Middle East, with more than 160,000 confirmed cases and 1,307 deaths. Several countries, including Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, had already withdrawn from the pilgrimage earlier this month over concerns about the virus. All able-bodied Muslims are required to perform the hajj once in their lifetime.

The Associated Press Aljazeera

6. S.C. protests postponed after several organizers infected with coronavirus

Racial justice protest organizers in South Carolina said Monday that they were postponing future demonstrations or moving them online after at least 13 participants in previous events tested positive for the coronavirus. Lawrence Nathaniel, one of the organizers of the "I Can't Breathe Protests," said in a video posted Sunday on Facebook that four organizers, three photographers, and six protesters who marched in Columbia, South Carolina, between May 30 and June 17 had tested positive as infection rates rebound in South Carolina and other states that reopened their economies early. "We need to do our part," he said. "Don't come to a protest until you get tested, okay?" Nationally, researchers have found "no evidence" that Black Lives Matter protests have led to increased coronavirus infection rates.

The Washington Post People

7. Protesters try to topple Andrew Jackson statue near White House

Protesters in Lafayette Square near the White House attempted to take down a statue of former President Andrew Jackson on Monday evening, but were unsuccessful. The statue, commissioned in 1847, shows Jackson on a horse. U.S. Park Police issued a statement saying the park is temporarily closed, and they are "actively working" to keep demonstrators from tearing down the statue. WUSA9 reports that police used pepper spray to push protesters out of the park, and some of the station's reporters were hit. While law enforcement worked to clear out the park, Secret Service agents at the White House asked members of the press to immediately leave the grounds, offering no explanation as to why they had to go, CNN reports.

WUSA9 CNN

8. Home sales plunged in May

U.S. home sales fell to their lowest level in nearly a decade in May, according to a National Association of Realtors report released Monday. The May figure reflects closings on contracts signed in March and April, when most of the United States was under coronavirus lockdown. Applications for home loans have jumped since then, reaching an 11-year high in recent weeks as mortgage rates fell to record lows. Building permits rebounded in May. "Home sales may bounce with pent-up demand following the shutdown of the economy starting in March, but the massive scale of job losses and cautious consumers rebuilding their savings may limit sales," said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at MUFG in New York. "There is still a long road to recovery for the broader economy."

Reuters

9. Screenwriter, producer Steve Bing dies at 55

Film writer and producer Steve Bing died by apparent suicide on Monday at age 55. Police said he was found at the base of his luxury apartment building in Los Angeles' Century City neighborhood after jumping from the 27th floor. Bing dropped out of Stanford to embark on a career in Hollywood after inheriting $600 million from his grandfather, a real estate developer. Bing wrote Kangaroo Jack in 2003 and financed The Polar Express in 2004. He also made large contributions to Democratic candidates and causes. TMZ, citing sources connected to Bing, reported that he had been depressed during quarantine. He is survived by two children, Damian Hurley from his relationship with film star Elizabeth Hurley, and daughter Kira Bonder, whose mother is former pro tennis player Lisa Bonder.

TMZ Variety

10. NASCAR rallies around Bubba Wallace after noose found in his garage

NASCAR's entire 40-driver field and their crew members walked behind Bubba Wallace's No. 43 car as he steered onto the pit road at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama ahead of a rain-delayed NASCAR Cup Series race on Monday, in a show of support after the discovery of a noose in Wallace's garage stall. Wallace, the Cup Series' only black driver, climbed out and sobbed as his Hall of Fame team owner Richard Petty put his hand on Wallace's shoulder. "The news has disturbed us all and of course we want justice and know who and why," said seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson. "And we want to stand with our friend." The FBI is investigating the incident. Wallace was instrumental in pushing NASCAR to ban Confederate flags from its racetracks and events.

The Associated Press ABC News