Ginsburg will lie in repose for two days at the court
Cindy McCain endorsing Biden because ‘he’s the better man’
Biden team prepared for all possibilities
US essential workers burned out amid pandemic
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LIVE Updated
10.35am EDT10:35 Fauci and Redfield testify before Senate committee
9.57am EDT09:57 John Roberts speaks about Ginsburg’s legacy
9.45am EDT09:45 Ginsburg’s casket arrives at supreme court
9.27am EDT09:27 Trump to visit Ginsburg’s casket at supreme court tomorrow
8.44am EDT08:44 Police in Iowa charge four people over death of man whose body was found burning in ditch – conclude it was not racially motivated
8.20am EDT08:20 Trump urges FDA to move quickly on Covid vaccines while praising new Johnson & Johnson clinical trials
7.20am EDT07:20 Statistical model at the Economist gives Democrats a 67% chance of flipping the Senate in November
11.14am EDT11:14
In case you missed it: Trump will hold a press conference at 6 pm ET today, on the “economy, job gains and vaccine development,” the president announced in a tweet this morning.
The presser comes one day after reports emerged that the Food and Drug Administration is planning to release strict guidelines on an emergency use authorization of a coronavirus vaccine, which would make it very unlikely a vaccine would be approved before election day.
Trump has previously said a vaccine will be available in “weeks,” but the CDC director, Robert Redfield, told the Senate last week that a vaccine would not be widely available to the American public until mid to late 2021.
10.59am EDT10:59
Lauren Aratani
Four top health officials are testifying in front of a Senate committee on the federal government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are among the experts that are testifying today.
Perhaps alluding to comments Redfield made last week where he said a mask may be more effective than a vaccine, Fauci said: “We feel strongly that if we have a combination of adherence to public health measures, together with the vaccine that will be distributed, we may be able to turn the pandemic around.” He said that a prediction of a vaccine is “of course no guarantee”.
In his opening statement, Redfield highlighted the shifting nature of infection in the country, saying that 26% of infections are in young adults ages 18 to 25. “It’s important that these young adults understand they are major contributors to the spread of covid-19 in our country at this time,” he said, emphasizing the importance of following public health guidelines.
Director of the Food and Drug Administration Stephen Hahn and assistant health secretary Brett Giroir are also testifying today.
10.48am EDT10:48
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, reiterated that he is “cautiously optimistic” that the country will be able to get a safe and effective coronavirus vaccine.
“As these trials go on, we predict that sometime by the end of this year—let’s say November or December—we will know whether or not these are safe and effective,” Fauci said of the current vaccine candidates.
The Food and Drug Administration is expected to soon release strict guidelines on the emergency authorization of a coronavirus vaccine that would make it very unlikely for a vaccine to be approved before election day, on November 3.
10.35am EDT10:35
Fauci and Redfield testify before Senate committee
Members of the White House coronavirus task force are now testifying before the Senate health, education, labor and pensions committee.
Among those testifying are Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Dr Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Fauci opened his remarks by noting his concerns about so-called “long haulers,” those who have experienced long-term effects after contracting coronavirus, such as fatigue and muscle aches.
Updated at 10.39am EDT
10.28am EDT10:28
Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s casket is now in place at the top of the supreme court steps, where it will be on public viewing for the next two days.
Hundreds of people came out to greet Ginsburg’s casket as it arrived at the supreme court this morning, and thousands will likely visit today and tomorrow to pay their respects to the late justice.
Trump will be among the mourners. According to a White House statement released this morning, the president plans to pay his respects tomorrow.
10.09am EDT10:09
One longtime supreme court reporter, Pete Williams of NBC News, became choked up on air as he watched Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s coffin arrive at the supreme court this morning.
Williams noted Ginsburg sat on the bench for 27 years, but her career with the supreme court truly started 49 years ago, when she argued her first case before the court. In the case, Ginsburg argued gender discrimination was unconstitutional.
9.57am EDT09:57
John Roberts speaks about Ginsburg’s legacy
Supreme court Chief Justice John Roberts is now speaking at the memorial service for his late colleague, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Roberts expressed his condolences to Ginsburg’s family and said the late justice’s life represented “one of the many versions of the American dream.”
Roberts noted that Ginsburg grew up in Brooklyn with her mother, who was a bookkeeper. Roberts said Ginsburg often told this joke: “What’s the difference between a bookkeeper in Brooklyn and a supreme court justice? One generation.”
Roberts added, “It has been said that Ruth wanted to be an opera virtuoso, but became a rock star instead.”
Roberts said Ginsburg brought the country “closer to equal justice under law” and became “a star on the bench.”
Updated at 10.02am EDT
9.45am EDT09:45
Ginsburg’s casket arrives at supreme court
The casket of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has arrived at the supreme court, where she will lie in repose today and tomorrow.