Today in one sentence: After a weekend out of sight, Trump emerged from the White House bunker and called America's governors "weak" and demanded that they "dominate" the protesters, which he labeled "terrorists"; Trump blamed the “Lamestream Media” for the protests; Trump took shelter inside an underground bunker for nearly an hour; the White House turned off almost all the exterior lights Sunday night as more than 1,000 people gathered to protest outside of its gates; and public health and government officials warned that the ongoing protests against police brutality could lead to a new wave of coronavirus infections.

  • 😷 Dept. of We Have It Totally Under Control.

  • Global: Total confirmed cases ~6,230,000; Total deaths: ~374,000; Total recoveries: ~2,673,000. (Johns Hopkins University)

  • U.S.: Total confirmed cases ~1,800,000; Total deaths: ~105,000; Total recoveries: ~445,000

  • [Promising news] The coronavirus is losing its potency and has become much less lethal, top Italian doctor says. (Reuters)

  • [Bad news] Florida’s seen a “statistically significant” uptick in the number of pneumonia and influenza deaths. The CDC said it’s likely COVID-19. (Daily Beast)

  • [Bad news] Public health and government officials warned that the ongoing protests against police brutality could lead to a new wave of coronavirus infections. The new cases could add to the already disproportionate burden the disease has had on African-American and Latino populations. (Washington Post / Wall Street Journal)

  • [Interesting theory] Coronavirus May Be a Blood Vessel Disease, Which Explains Everything. 40% of deaths from COVID-19 are related to cardiovascular complications, and the disease starts to look like a vascular infection instead of a purely respiratory one. (Elemental)

  • 👑 Portrait of a president.

  • While Trump shelters in the White House, America cries out for leadership. Under siege in the White House, Trump is aggravating America’s latest racial anguish in a nation now simultaneously beset by violence-wracked cities, a deadly disease, and staggering economic deprivation. (CNN)

  • As Protests and Violence Spill Over, Trump Shrinks Back. Trump spent Sunday out of sight, berating opponents on Twitter, even as some of his campaign advisers were recommending that he deliver a televised address to the nation. (New York Times)

1/ After a weekend out of sight, Trump emerged from the White House bunker and called America’s governors “weak” and demanded that they “dominate” the protesters, which he labeled “terrorists.” Trump asked “Why aren’t you prosecuting them?” while demanding “retribution.” He warned governors that they’d look like “a bunch of jerks” if they didn’t send the protesters to “jail for long periods of time.” Otherwise, Trump added, “you’re wasting your time.” Trump, who has not formally addressed the nation since the protests began, continued: “you have to use the military […] we have a wonderful military,” adding that they would look like “fools” if they didn’t take control of the situation. Trump also accused Minnesota of becoming “a laughingstock all over the world.” (New York Times / Washington Post / CNN / Wall Street Journal / CBS News)

  • Trump blamed the “Lamestream Media” for the protests, calling journalists “truly bad people with a sick agenda” after they were repeatedly targeted by police nationwide last weekend with pepper spray, tear gas, rubber bullets, and excessive use of force. (New York Times)

2/ On Friday, Trump took shelter inside an underground bunker for nearly an hour as protests continued outside the White House and across Washington, D.C. Trump was abruptly taken by Secret Service agents inside the Presidential Emergency Operations Center, an underground bunker that is used to shelter presidents during threatening situations, like terrorist attacks. Trump and his family have reportedly been “shaken” by the experience and the size of the protests. (Associated Press / New York Times / CBS News)

3/ The White House turned off almost all the exterior lights Sunday night as more than 1,000 people gathered to protest outside of its gates. It is unclear why the Trump administration decided to do so, but the White House insisted that there was “nothing new” about the lights-out incident, saying “lights go out at about 11 p.m. almost every night.” In normal times, however, the lights are only ever turned off when a president dies. Trump, meanwhile, from safely inside the White House had nothing to say other than to tweet for mayors and governors to “get tough” and that “The World is watching and laughing at you and Sleepy Joe.” (Vox / The Guardian /New York Magazine / Newsweek / Washington Post / Slate)

4/ Trump tweeted that the U.S. would designate a group of anti-fascism activists as a terror organization, despite lacking the legal authority. Trump, his top officials, Attorney General William Barr, and national security adviser Robert O’Brien have all blamed antifa for the violent protests across the country. Antifa, however, is not an organization and does not have a leader, membership roles or any defined, centralized structure. Further, if antifa were a real organization, current law only permits the State Department to designate foreign organizations as terrorist groups. The U.S. does not have domestic terrorism statute. (Politico / New York Times / CNN)

  • Trump dismissed advice from numerous advisers both inside and outside the White House urging him to tone down his rhetoric and make a formal address to the nation. (Axios / NBC News)

poll/ 54% of Americans support Twitter’s decision to add a fact-checking label to Trump’s tweets. 26% thought Twitter was wrong, while 20% have no opinion of the move. (Axios)

✏️ Notables.

  1. Trump will postpone next month’s G-7 summit at the White House after German Chancellor Angela Merkel declined his invitation to attend, citing the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Trump responded by telling reporters on Air Force One that he feels the group is “very outdated” and doesn’t properly represent “what’s going on in the world. He said he plans to invite Russia, Australia, South Korea, and India. Russia was ejected from the group — previously the G8 — after its annexation of Crimea in 2014. (Politico / Associated Press / Politico)

  2. The Justice Department urged a federal Appeals Court to dismiss the prosecution of Michael Flynn. A lower-court judge has held up the dismissal, citing the Justice Department’s “unusual” reversal. (Politico)

  3. Transcripts show that Michael Flynn told Russia’s ambassador to Washington in late 2016 to take “reciprocal” actions in response to Obama administration sanctions for election interference, rather than escalating the situation into a “tit for tat.” (Politico)

  4. The top lawyer for the FBI was forced to resign by the Justice Department following criticism by Fox News for his role in the investigation of Michael Flynn. Dana Boente was asked to step down by senior officials at the DOJ. Boente was the one who signed off on a warrant in 2017 authorizing the FBI to conduct surveillance on Flynn. He also signed one of the reauthorizations to surveil Trump campaign associate Carter Page. Several of Trump’s supporters have recently gone on Fox News and other conservative media outlets to criticize Boente’s brief role in the Russia probe. Boente spent nearly 40 years at the FBI as its general counsel and a former acting attorney general. (The Guardian / CNN / Washington Post / NBC News / Associated Press)

Two years ago today: Day 498: "Totally unacceptable."
Three years ago today: Day 133: It's heating up.