Trump fires watchdog who handled Ukraine complaint

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has fired Michael Atkinson, the inspector general for the intelligence community who handled the whistleblower complaint that triggered Trump's impeachment.

Trump informed the Senate intelligence committee Friday of his decision to fire Atkinson, according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press.

Trump said in the letter that it is “vital” that he has confidence in the appointees serving as inspectors general, and “that is no longer the case with regard to this inspector general.”

Atkinson was the first to inform Congress about an anonymous whistleblower complaint last year that described Trump’s pressure on Ukraine to investigate Democrat Joe Biden and his son. That complaint prompted a House investigation that ultimately resulted in Trump's impeachment.

The Senate acquitted Trump in February.

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US urges masks as dramatic steps to combat virus roll out

NEW YORK (AP) — The Trump administration urged Americans to cover their faces in public and limited exports of medical supplies Friday as New York’s governor took his own dramatic step to fight the coronavirus — vowing to seize unused ventilators from private hospitals and companies.

President Donald Trump announced new guidelines that call for everyone to wear makeshift face coverings such as T-shirts and bandannas when leaving the house, especially in areas hit hard by the pandemic, like New York. But the president said he had no intention of following the advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“It’s a recommendation, they recommend it,” Trump said. “I just don’t want to wear one myself.”

The policy change comes amid concerns from health officials that those without symptoms can spread the virus, especially in places like grocery stores or pharmacies. Officials stressed that medical-grade masks should be reserved for health workers and others on the front lines of the pandemic.

In one of the most aggressive steps yet in the U.S. to relieve severe shortages of equipment, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he would sign an executive order to take ventilators that aren't being used.

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What you need to know today about the virus outbreak

The Trump administration urged Americans to wear face coverings in public and limited exports of medical supplies Friday as New York’s governor took his own dramatic step to fight the coronavirus by vowing to seize unused ventilators from private hospitals and companies. The new federal guidelines call for Americans, especially in hard-hit areas, to wear makeshift masks like bandanas or T-shirts over their faces.

After Trump announced the face coverings recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control, he said he's not going to wear one.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo's dramatic move came as New York state tallied its biggest daily jump yet in deaths— up 562 to 2,935

Stocks fell again on Wall Street following the latest grim reading on the toll the coronavirus is taking on jobs as the economy grinds to a halt. The government reported earlier Friday that more than 700,000 jobs were lost last month because of the pandemic, and investors and economists expect that far worse data is on the way. The unemployment rate jumped to 4.4% from a 50-year low of 3.5%.

Meanwhile, U.S. and European medical workers struggling to save ailing patients watched supplies of medicine, protective equipment and breathing machines dwindle by the hour.

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Some states receive masks with dry rot, broken ventilators

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Some states and cities that have been shipped masks, gloves, ventilators and other essential equipment from the nation's medical stockpile to fight the coronavirus have gotten an unwelcome surprise: the material is unusable.

Nearly 6,000 medical masks sent to Alabama had dry rot and a 2010 expiration date. More than 150 ventilators sent to Los Angeles were broken and had to be repaired. In Oregon, it was masks with faulty elastic that could cause the straps to snap, exposing medical workers to the disease.

“Several of the shipments we have received from the strategic national stockpile contained (personal protective equipment) well past expiration dates and, while we are being told much of the expired equipment is capable of being used for COVID-19 response, they would not be suitable for use in surgical settings," Charles Boyle, a spokesman for Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, said in an email.

He said some of the equipment had been purchased during the H1N1 outbreak more than a decade ago and that the masks with the fragile elastic had been among products previously recalled by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The state did not distribute them to medical workers.

A shortage of protective gear has imperiled doctors, nurses and other front-line medical workers. Life-saving ventilators have been in short supply as more and more states experience outbreaks of the COVID-19 disease, which typically causes mild or moderate symptoms but can be especially perilous for older adults and people with existing health problems. Many younger adults and medical workers also have succumbed to the disease.

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Wisconsin limps toward Tuesday election despite virus fears

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin's attempt to conduct an election in the midst of a coronavirus crisis lurched forward Friday, with a Democratic governor pushing for an all-mail election to replace in-person voting and Republican leaders refusing to budge.

Just three days before Tuesday's spring primary — which features the Democratic presidential contest plus a high-stakes state Supreme Court race — a federal judge had extended absentee voting through April 13 but refused requests to postpone the election.

With thousands of poll workers quitting, Gov. Tony Evers for the first time Friday called for an all-mail election, ordering a special session Saturday and asking the Republican-dominated Legislature to agree.

“I sit here telling you the time is now for leadership and all the people that are part of the Senate and Assembly to step to the plate and do what's necessary to ensure we have safety in the state and we have an election we'll be using mail ballots for,” Evers said, expressing confidence that the state would “get there” on shifting the election.

Republicans swiftly made clear their feeling that the election should continue as planned, and accused Evers of waffling under pressure from liberal groups.

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Insurance marketplaces offer help with coronavirus job cuts

More than a million people could swamp the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplaces in the coming months as employers lay off staff during the coronavirus pandemic.

The health insurance markets are a backbone of the Obama-era law that President Donald Trump has tried to demolish. They are now seen as a key option to help protect people from devastating medical bills while they search for another job and new coverage.

Nearly 10 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits in the final two weeks of March, far exceeding the figure for any corresponding period on record.

Here’s a closer look at the issue.

WHAT’S THE RISK OF REMAINING UNINSURED?

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Face coverings recommended, but Trump says he won't wear one

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced new federal guidelines Friday recommending that Americans wear face coverings when in public to help fight the spread of the new coronavirus. The president immediately said he had no intention of following that advice himself, saying, “I'm choosing not to do it."

The new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encourages people, especially in areas hit hard by the spread of the coronavirus, to use rudimentary coverings like T-shirts, bandannas and non-medical masks to cover their faces while outdoors.

The president exempted himself from his administration's own guidelines, saying he could not envision himself covering his face while sitting in the Oval Office greeting world leaders.

“It's a recommendation, they recommend it," Trump said. “I just don't want to wear one myself.”

The new guidance, announced as states are bracing for critical shortfalls like those that other parts of the world have experienced, raises concern that it could cause a sudden run on masks.

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'Recovery' search for Kennedy Townsend's daughter, grandson

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Authorities were conducting a “recovery" search for the daughter and a grandson of former Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, after a canoe they were paddling in the Chesapeake Bay didn’t return to shore, the family said Friday.

The missing relatives were identified as Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean, 40, and McKean’s 8-year-old son, Gideon Joseph Kennedy McKean.

“With profound sadness, I share the news that the search for my beloved daughter Maeve and grandson Gideon has turned from rescue to recovery,” Kathleen Kennedy Townsend said in a statement Friday night, according to news outlets.

A Maryland Natural Resources Police spokeswoman said authorities suspended the search Friday night but would resume Saturday morning.

Kennedy Townsend, who served two terms as Maryland’s lieutenant governor, is the eldest daughter of the late U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, and niece of the late President John F. Kennedy.

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Anick Jesdanun, longtime AP technology writer, dies at 51

He ran marathons on every continent, including Antarctica — 83 of them in all, many followed by a visit to an obscure craft brewery. Last year, he watched 365 movies — most of them in theatres. And Anick Jesdanun made sure — always — that when millions of people read his coverage of the internet and its ripples, they got all the facts and the context they needed.

Jesdanun, 51, deputy technology editor for The Associated Press, died in New York City on Thursday of coronavirus-related complications, his family said.

For more than two decades, Jesdanun helped generations of readers understand the emerging internet and its impact on the world. And while his work may have been about screens and computers and virtual networks, Jesdanun’s large life was about the world and exploring all of the corners of it that he could, virtual and physical alike.

“Before people knew the internet was full of falsehoods, he was the guy who said, `We’d better check that,’” said his colleague, AP technology writer Michael Liedtke.

Jesdanun, known as Nick, was the first AP reporter to be given the “internet writer” byline two decades ago, when the world was less than 10 years into using the network widely.

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At Madrid field hospital, staff seeks to provide human touch

MADRID (AP) — There's a bookshelf filled with donated novels. Hotel toiletries rest on cardboard boxes turned into bedside tables. Meals are served with personalized notes from the staff. And an army of volunteers do their best to keep up an air of optimism amid the pandemic.

At a cavernous convention centre that has become Spain’s largest makeshift hospital, these touches of kindness and camaraderie are helping to make the days and nights more bearable for patients afflicted with COVID-19.

“Despite the distance that we keep from each other, there is a sense of community,” said Jonan Basterra as he waited for the oxygen in his blood to reach a level high enough so he can go home.

The 50-year-old patient dreams about defeating the virus so he can shave off the beard he has grown and celebrate with ice cream. In the meantime, he rests in bed No. 15.18, making friends with others or reading the books that a nurse brought from home and offered in an improvised open library.

“We are all in this together and we are all going to get out of here together,” he told The Associated Press via video call shortly before he was delivered a potato omelet — one of Spain's national dishes — with a personalized note from the hospital's makeshift kitchen. The cooks had learned on social media about Basterra’s craving for the food.

News from © The Associated Press, 2020