Today’s Headlines and Commentary

President Trump yesterday reassured Americans that, in his estimation, it is safe to reopen the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic, and offered support to protestors who have railed against stay-at-home orders across the country, reports the Washington Post. But President Trump also scaled up the estimate for the number of expected dead from the coronavirus—projecting that the U.S. toll may be as high as 100,000, up from his prior prediction of 65,000.

U.S. officials claimed China “intentionally concealed the severity” of the coronavirus outbreak to stock up on medical supplies needed to respond to it, according to a four-page Department of Homeland Security intelligence report dated May 1, writes the Associated Press.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo yesterday claimed the novel coronavirus originated in a research laboratory in Wuhan, China, according to the New York Times. Pompeo said that “there’s enormous evidence” that the coronavirus came from the lab, but the intelligence community has not reached a conclusion on the issue.

The World Health Organization is complaining publicly that China has refused to allow it to participate in investigations on the origins of the novel coronavirus, reports the Hill.

The Trump administration has blocked Dr. Anthony Fauci from testifying before the House Appropriations Committee next week, writes Politico.

President Trump on Friday night announced the replacement of a top official in the inspector general’s office at the Department of Health and Human Services who angered him last month with a report highlighting supply shortages and testing delays at hospitals during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the New York Times. The White House waited until after business hours to announce the nomination of a new principal deputy inspector general who, if confirmed, would take over for Christi Grimm.

The Taliban today claimed responsibility for a truck bomb that injured at least a dozen Afghan security force members in the southern province of Helmand, reports Reuters.

Israel’s high court yesterday heard petitions against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu forming a government while under indictment for bribery, fraud and breach of trust charges, writes the Wall Street Journal. Netanyahu and his rival Benny Gantz agreed last month to form a unity government, but they have faced questions about the legality of the coalition agreement. Avichai Mandelblit, Israel’s attorney general, issued an opinion last week saying he doesn’t believe there’s any obstacle to Netanyahu leading the next government despite being under criminal indictment.

President Trump on Saturday welcomed the reemergence of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un after weeks of speculation that he was seriously ill, according to Reuters.

ICYMI: Yesterday on Lawfare

Rebecca Wolfe and Hilary Matfess argued the COVID-19 pandemic is only the most immediate of a set of crises to which the international community cannot adequately respond.

Jen Patja Howell shared an episode of the Lawfare Podcast featuring an interview with Daniel Immerwahr, professor of history at Northwestern University, about the law and policy of American empire.

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