Coronavirus Roundup: Trump Questions CDC’s School Reopening Guidelines; Pandemic Watchdog Highlights First 90 Days

On Wednesday, the United States set a record for the number of new coronavirus cases confirmed (over 60,000). This was the fifth national record set in the span of nine days, according to Johns Hopkins University’s COVID-19  tracker. Here are some other recent headlines you might have missed. 

The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt is expected to return to its home port in San Diego after a massive coronavirus outbreak onboard that shook up Navy leadership, The San Francisco Chronicle reported on Wednesday.  

The heads of the top eight defense contractors wrote to the Office of Management and Budget and Defense Department to renew their calls for more defense funding in the next coronavirus stimulus package. They “warn[ed] of consequences for the defense industrial base and Pentagon modernization efforts if Congress doesn’t increase funding for pandemic-related costs,” Politico reported on Thursday. 

The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee released a video on Thursday to highlight its accomplishments during its first 90 days. So far the committee has launched a tracker to follow contract spending, started 74 ongoing oversight projects, released 21 public reports, and conducted investigations that led to 36 arrests or indictments and 4 fraud-related civil actions. 

The Transportation Security Administration increased its health safety precautions for employees last week after a whistleblower alleged the agency wasn’t doing enough, The Washington Post reported on Thursday. The new measures include providing eye protection for those not behind a plastic screen and requirements to change or sanitize gloves between passenger screenings. “The system responded with lightning speed to the truth about a significant threat,” Tom Devine, the whistleblower’s lawyer and legal director at the Government Accountability Project, told The Washington Post. “I’ve never seen the truth make a difference so quickly.”

On Wednesday morning, President Trump criticized the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines for reopening schools, claiming they were “very tough and expensive.” He also threatened to cut off federal funding to schools if they don’t reopen in the fall, although he does not have the power to do so. However, during a briefing later in the day, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said, “The CDC is very much on the same page as the president.”  

On Thursday, CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield told ABC News that the agency would not revise its guidelines. “Our guidelines are our guidelines, but we are going to provide additional reference documents to aid basically communities in trying to open K-through-12s,” he said. “It's not a revision of the guidelines; it's just to provide additional information to help schools be able to use the guidance we put forward.”

Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., chairwoman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, unveiled legislation on Wednesday aimed at preparing for future pandemics. The bill would require a sufficient stock of personal protective equipment in the Strategic National Stockpile at all times with at least 25% of the PPE produced in the United States. The Washington Post reported on Thursday that frontline health workers are once against running low on supplies as the country keeps hitting daily record highs of new coronavirus cases. 

Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., introduced legislation on Wednesday that would establish a National Institute of Manufacturing to create and implement a national plan to address supply chain issues across the executive branch. While some of these issues were long-term they were “further exposed by the coronavirus pandemic,” said Peters. The institute would “review federal regulations that affect manufacturing and help develop a National Strategic Plan for Manufacturing that includes planning for emergencies and supply chain disruptions,” said a press release. “The bill would also revive and elevate the National Manufacturing Council, which was established by the International Trade Administration and was last convened four years ago.”

Before the Election Assistance Commission’s hearing on Wednesday about lessons learned during primary voting amid the pandemic, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., chairwoman of the House Administration Committee, called for more federal action ahead of the general election. “We must protect voters and poll workers by providing expanded vote by mail and safe in-person early voting options in order to preserve social distancing and reduce dangerous overcrowding at polling locations,” she said. “Clear federal standards are necessary so voters know how, when, and where to vote with the confidence their ballot will be counted as cast.” She also called for more funding for state and local election administrators. 

President Trump has still not filed his annual financial disclosure report required by federal ethics rules after getting an extension due to the pandemic. It was initially due in May then pushed to June 29. A White House official said he would file it “as soon as possible,” The New York Times reported on Thursday. 

On Thursday, the administration published a proposed rule to clarify that the Justice and Homeland Security Departments can consider the “potential international threats from the spread of pandemics” in determining whether or not to grant asylum to individuals. Public comment is due by August 10.      

Today’s GovExec Daily podcast episode looks at potential reforms to law enforcement, in the wake of the nationwide protests, such as replacing police officers with social workers. 

Help us understand the situation better. Are you a federal employee, contractor or military member with information, concerns, etc. about how your agency is handling the coronavirus? Email us at newstips@govexec.com.