By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities are not yet seeing spikes in coronavirus cases in places that are reopening but it was still too early to determine such trends, health secretary Alex Azar said on Sunday.“We are seeing that in places that are opening, we’re not seeing this spike in cases,” Azar said on CNN’s “State of the Union” program. “We still see spikes in some areas that are, in fact, closed.”However, Azar said identifying and reporting new cases takes time. A critical part of reopening will be surveillance of flu-like symptoms in the population and other hospital admissions...…By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities are not yet seeing spikes in coronavirus cases in places that are reopening but it was still too early to determine such trends, health secretary Alex Azar said on Sunday.“We are seeing that in places that are opening, we’re not seeing this spike in cases,” Azar said on CNN’s “State of the Union” program. “We still see spikes in some areas that are, in fact, closed.”However, Azar said identifying and reporting new cases takes time. A critical part of reopening will be surveillance of flu-like symptoms in the population and other hospital admissions...WW…

By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump’s pause in holding White House coronavirus briefings only lasted the weekend as he took center stage in the Rose Garden on Monday to promote what he called a major expansion in testing for the virus.Trump’s advisers have been arguing that the sessions, held nearly every day for more than a month, had begun to show him in an unfavorable light, particularly after Thursday when he asked his health experts whether disinfectants that kill the virus on surfaces might be used in patients as a treatment.Some Republicans fear Trump is doing his...…By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump’s pause in holding White House coronavirus briefings only lasted the weekend as he took center stage in the Rose Garden on Monday to promote what he called a major expansion in testing for the virus.Trump’s advisers have been arguing that the sessions, held nearly every day for more than a month, had begun to show him in an unfavorable light, particularly after Thursday when he asked his health experts whether disinfectants that kill the virus on surfaces might be used in patients as a treatment.Some Republicans fear Trump is doing his...WW…

By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden would be willing to push through his $2 trillion infrastructure plan without the support of Republican lawmakers if he cannot reach a bipartisan deal, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said on Sunday.Granholm said Biden would prefer that his plan have Republican backing but, if that does not work, he would likely support using a procedural strategy called reconciliation to allow Democrats to pass it in the Senate.“As he has said, he was sent to the presidency to do a job for America. And if the vast majority of Americans, Democrats and...…By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden would be willing to push through his $2 trillion infrastructure plan without the support of Republican lawmakers if he cannot reach a bipartisan deal, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said on Sunday.Granholm said Biden would prefer that his plan have Republican backing but, if that does not work, he would likely support using a procedural strategy called reconciliation to allow Democrats to pass it in the Senate.“As he has said, he was sent to the presidency to do a job for America. And if the vast majority of Americans, Democrats and...WW…

By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday that differences remained with President Donald Trump’s administration on a wide-ranging coronavirus relief package but that she was optimistic legislation could be pushed through before Election Day.Pelosi, the top elected U.S. Democrat, said she wanted a bill passed before the Nov. 3 presidential election between Republican Trump and Democrat Joe Biden, but acknowledged an agreement would have to come within 48 hours for that to happen.“I’m optimistic because, again, we’ve been back and forth on all of this,” Pelosi said...…By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday that differences remained with President Donald Trump’s administration on a wide-ranging coronavirus relief package but that she was optimistic legislation could be pushed through before Election Day.Pelosi, the top elected U.S. Democrat, said she wanted a bill passed before the Nov. 3 presidential election between Republican Trump and Democrat Joe Biden, but acknowledged an agreement would have to come within 48 hours for that to happen.“I’m optimistic because, again, we’ve been back and forth on all of this,” Pelosi said...WW…

By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives expects to pass a nearly $500 billion coronavirus relief bill on Thursday but will put off any decision on changing its voting rules during the pandemic, avoiding a potential partisan fight.Slideshow The bill, which will provide funds to small businesses and hospitals struggling with the economic toll of a pandemic that has killed more than 45,000 Americans, is expected to be the fourth coronavirus measure passed by Congress, boosting the overall federal financial response to almost $3 trillion.Democratic House Speaker Nancy...…By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives expects to pass a nearly $500 billion coronavirus relief bill on Thursday but will put off any decision on changing its voting rules during the pandemic, avoiding a potential partisan fight.Slideshow The bill, which will provide funds to small businesses and hospitals struggling with the economic toll of a pandemic that has killed more than 45,000 Americans, is expected to be the fourth coronavirus measure passed by Congress, boosting the overall federal financial response to almost $3 trillion.Democratic House Speaker Nancy...WW…

By , WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City, the hardest hit U.S. city in the coronavirus pandemic, revised its official COVID-19 death toll sharply higher to more than 10,000 on Tuesday, to include victims presumed to have perished from the lung disease but never tested.The new cumulative figure for “confirmed and probable COVID-19 deaths” released by the New York City Health Department marked a staggering increase of over 3,700 deaths formally attributed to the highly contagious illness since March 11.The 60 percent spike in reported deaths underscored the enormous losses endured...…By , WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City, the hardest hit U.S. city in the coronavirus pandemic, revised its official COVID-19 death toll sharply higher to more than 10,000 on Tuesday, to include victims presumed to have perished from the lung disease but never tested.The new cumulative figure for “confirmed and probable COVID-19 deaths” released by the New York City Health Department marked a staggering increase of over 3,700 deaths formally attributed to the highly contagious illness since March 11.The 60 percent spike in reported deaths underscored the enormous losses endured...WW…

By , NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Several more U.S. governors on Monday joined the procession of states ordering millions of Americans to stay at home to slow the spread of the coronavirus, while President Trump signaled he’s considering a move in the opposite direction.Public health authorities have pushed for the stay-at-home restrictions as essential to curb widespread transmission of a highly contagious respiratory virus that has infected more than 42,000 people in the United States, killing at least 559.While a wave of statewide social distancing measures expanded, further stifling...…By , NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Several more U.S. governors on Monday joined the procession of states ordering millions of Americans to stay at home to slow the spread of the coronavirus, while President Trump signaled he’s considering a move in the opposite direction.Public health authorities have pushed for the stay-at-home restrictions as essential to curb widespread transmission of a highly contagious respiratory virus that has infected more than 42,000 people in the United States, killing at least 559.While a wave of statewide social distancing measures expanded, further stifling...WW…

By , WASHINGTON/KYIV (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden used a first official phone call with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday to offer staunch support in Ukraine’s standoff over Russian troops near its border.Slideshow Washington has been Ukraine’s most powerful ally since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 but ties were overshadowed by Ukraine’s unwilling involvement in events leading to the impeachment trial of Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump.The conversation came after Western nations and transatlantic military alliance NATO voiced concern over Russian troop movements near...…By , WASHINGTON/KYIV (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden used a first official phone call with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday to offer staunch support in Ukraine’s standoff over Russian troops near its border.Slideshow Washington has been Ukraine’s most powerful ally since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 but ties were overshadowed by Ukraine’s unwilling involvement in events leading to the impeachment trial of Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump.The conversation came after Western nations and transatlantic military alliance NATO voiced concern over Russian troop movements near...WW…

By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department said on Monday it was imposing sanctions on two members of Myanmar’s ruling junta, including the chief of police, and two military units linked to the deadly repression of protests again the army’s coup, as Washington warned of more action.President Joe Biden’s administration has already blacklisted top junta members and some military-owned companies, but the military has refused to change course and increasingly used violence against anti-coup demonstrators, killing more than 250 people so far.“Today’s actions send a strong signal...…By , WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department said on Monday it was imposing sanctions on two members of Myanmar’s ruling junta, including the chief of police, and two military units linked to the deadly repression of protests again the army’s coup, as Washington warned of more action.President Joe Biden’s administration has already blacklisted top junta members and some military-owned companies, but the military has refused to change course and increasingly used violence against anti-coup demonstrators, killing more than 250 people so far.“Today’s actions send a strong signal...WW…

By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump declined to say the Confederate flag was an offensive symbol in an interview broadcast on Sunday, saying it is a source of pride for people who love the South.The Republican president was asked on “Fox News Sunday” if the flag, a symbol of U.S. slavery and white supremacy for many Americans, was offensive.“It depends on who you’re talking about, when you’re talking about,” Trump responded. “When people proudly had their Confederate flags they’re not talking about racism. They love their flag, it represents the South. They like the South...…By WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump declined to say the Confederate flag was an offensive symbol in an interview broadcast on Sunday, saying it is a source of pride for people who love the South.The Republican president was asked on “Fox News Sunday” if the flag, a symbol of U.S. slavery and white supremacy for many Americans, was offensive.“It depends on who you’re talking about, when you’re talking about,” Trump responded. “When people proudly had their Confederate flags they’re not talking about racism. They love their flag, it represents the South. They like the South...WW…