Former aides to former President Donald Trump are reportedly looking back at the end of his term as a major missed opportunity to encourage his supporters to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

A new report in Politico describes how Trump's "unwillingness to pitch his voters on getting the jab has become the source of frustration for former aides," not to mention experts who believe he could have helped sway those Republicans who say they won't get vaccinated. While Trump was in office, there was reportedly a "monthslong effort to get him to publicly take the lead" on pushing vaccinations.

"If he spent the last 90 days being the voice — and taking credit because he deserved to for the vaccine — and helping get as many Americans get vaccinated as he could, he would be remembered for that,” a former senior administration official said.

In fact, health officials pushed for Trump to receive a COVID-19 vaccine on camera, and officials from the White House and federal agencies planned for him take on the role of the "vaccine's salesman-in-chief," Politico reports.

Ultimately, Trump didn't get the vaccine publicly, though former Vice President Mike Pence did. A senior administration official told Politico there were concerns that Trump would be seen as "jumping the line" ahead of those at higher risk after he had COVID-19 in the fall. But officials were also reportedly skeptical that Trump would be open to getting the vaccine on camera.

"Someone joked and said, 'Have you ever seen him wear a short sleeved shirt in public?'" a former administration official told Politico. "'I don't think that's going to happen.'"

It was later revealed in March that Trump actually quietly received the vaccine off camera before he left office — and not only did the White House not tell anyone, but Politico says top health officials and aides didn't even know this was happening at the time Read more at Politico. Brendan Morrow

After coming forward with sexual abuse allegations against rock star Marilyn Manson, Game of Thrones star Esmé Bianco is taking him to court.

Bianco on Friday filed a lawsuit against Manson, accusing him of rape and sexual battery, Rolling Stone reports. The actress, who played Ros on Game of Thrones, also alleges that Manson violated human trafficking laws when he brought her to Los Angeles from London to star in projects that were never made or released.

Bianco first leveled her allegations against Manson earlier this year, accusing him of physically and sexually abusing her during their relationship. The lawsuit alleges Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, "used drugs, force, and threats of force to coerce sexual acts from Ms. Bianco on multiple occasions" and accuses him of raping her, groping her in public, and "spanking, biting, cutting, and whipping Ms. Bianco's buttocks, breasts, and genitals" without consent.

In one incident, Manson allegedly locked Bianco in a bedroom, "tied her to a prayer kneeler, and beat her with a whip that Mr. Warner said was utilized by the Nazis" and "electrocuted her." The lawsuit alleges he also once chased her "around the apartment with an ax," cut her "with a Nazi knife during sex," and kept her "awake for days at a time and then would lock her out of the apartment overnight."

Additionally, Manson is accused of having "employed fraud" by bringing Bianco to the U.S. based on the promise of "work opportunities that never appeared while inserting himself in her visa process" so that he could "control Ms. Bianco by threatening to withdraw support if she displeased him."

Numerous other women have also come forward with abuse allegations against Manson, including Westworld star Evan Rachel Wood, who alleged in February that he "horrifically abused me for years." Manson has denied the allegations and said that "my intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners." Brendan Morrow

Former reality TV star Josh Duggar has pleaded not guilty to charges of receiving and possessing child pornography.

Duggar, who starred on the TLC reality series 19 Kids and Counting, was arrested on Thursday in Arkansas, and prosecutors said Friday he allegedly "used the internet to download child sexual abuse material" and possessed material that "depicts the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12." He faces up to 20 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines for each count, the United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Arkansas said.

Making his first appearance in court on Friday through Zoom, Duggar pleaded not guilty to the charges, according to BuzzFeed News.

19 Kids and Counting, the reality show revolving around Duggar's family, was canceled by TLC in 2015 after it came to light that Duggar allegedly molested young girls including his sisters when he was a teenager. "I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret," Duggar said at the time. His attorneys said Friday "we intend to defend this case aggressively and thoroughly." Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, Josh's parents, in a statement to Us Weekly said the "accusations brought against Joshua today are very serious" and that "it is our prayer that the truth, no matter what it is, will come to light."

According to TMZ, Duggar's trial is scheduled for July. Brendan Morrow

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) says the idea that the U.S. has systemic policies that perpetuate racism is absolute "horse manure."

While speaking to Fox News' Laura Ingraham at a governors' town hall event on Thursday night, DeSantis was asked about systemic racism, which Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) discussed in his rebuttal to President Biden's speech to Congress. Scott declared "America is not a racist country," an increasingly hot topic as politicians disagree "over the pervasiveness of non-obvious racism within systems," writes The Washington Post.

DeSantis' position in the debate is obviously clear, as he called the notion of systemic racism "a bunch of horse manure." But the timing of his comments was conspicuous, as earlier that same day, Florida's Republican-led legislature passed new rules on voting that Black lawmakers said would make it harder for millions of voters, especially people of color, to cast ballots. DeSantis said "of course" he'll sign the bill into law.

"Give me a break," DeSantis told Ingraham, arguing that because "we've had people that have been able to succeed" the system must be fine. However, the latest voting law, which restricts voting by mail and ballot drop boxes, has been criticized as an example of systemic racism in that it deepens longstanding discrepancies between voting access for white voters and nonwhite voters — Florida state Rep. Omari Hardy (D) called the bill "the revival of Jim Crow in this state, whether the sponsors admit it or not."

You'd think the ethics of paying an underage girl for sex are cut-and-dry, but as Joel Greenberg tells it, he and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) are actually victims in the alleged situation.

The Daily Beast dropped a bombshell report in the case against Gaetz on Thursday, revealing a letter reportedly written to Trump ally Roger Stone in which Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector, apparently confesses that he and Gaetz had sex with an underage girl.

But according to Greenberg, the situation is largely the fault of the then 17-year-old — not of the two adult men allegedly paying her for sex. Greenberg reportedly wrote in the letter that they both thought the girl was 19, and upon finding out she was underage, Greenberg "confronted" the girl to stress "how serious of a situation this was, how many people she put in danger." The girl then "apologized and recognized that by lying about her age, she endangered many people."

As The Guardian's Moira Donegan pointed out, Greenberg reportedly "coerced a teenager into sleeping with them" and then "guilted" her over the situation.

Greenberg also emphasized that he and Gaetz "immediately" ended contact with the girl after finding out her real age — but that apparently didn't stop him from reportedly hitting her up again once she turned 18. Marianne Dodson

The United States has reached a significant milestone in the pandemic, according to the White House.

White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients said during a briefing on Friday that 100 million Americans have now been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, "nearly double" the 55 million Americans who had been fully vaccinated as of the end of March. He later clarified this is the number of Americans who have received both doses of a two-dose vaccine or one dose of a single-dose vaccine. A person is fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving this dose, according to the CDC.

"That's 100 million Americans with a sense of relief and peace of mind, knowing that after a long and hard year, they're protected from the virus," Zients said.

This comes after the CDC updated its guidelines earlier this week to say that those who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 generally no longer need to wear masks outside except when in crowded settings. The 100 million milestone, Zients said, "represents significant progress and cause for hope." Brendan Morrow

Household income in the United States soared in March, the Commerce Department said on Friday, setting a new record.

Personal income increased by 21.1 percent last month, according to a Bureau of Economic Analysis report, which was the largest monthly increase since these records have been kept going back to 1959, The Wall Street Journal reports. Disposable personal income also rose by 23.6 percent.

President Biden in March signed Congress' $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill, which included direct payments to Americans, and the Bureau of Economic Analysis noted the "increase in personal income in March largely reflected an increase in government social benefits." In February, incomes had fallen by seven percent, according to The Associated Press.

The report also showed that Americans' personal saving rate grew 27.6 percent in March, which the Journal notes was the second highest rate on record. The U.S. economy also grew 1.6 percent in the first three months of the year, while consuming spending in March rose 4.2 percent.

"The strong consumer showing at the end of the first quarter sets the tone for a summer boom,” Oxford Economics chief economist Gregory Daco said, per The Associated Press. "As health conditions improve and the economy reopens, generous fiscal stimulus, rebounding employment and rising optimism will help unleash pent-up demand." Brendan Morrow