Newsletter May 11, 2021

Dr. Anthony Fauci painted a rosy picture for Americans ready to move past the pandemic -- and his words also gave hope for economic recovery.

3 Things

Pandemic prognosis: Once nicknamed "Dr. Doom and Gloom" by the previous administration for his vigilance against the coronavirus, Dr. Anthony Fauci finally delivered a positive prognosis about the nation's recovery -- both from a health and economic standpoint.
Fauci gave an optimistic outlook about the state of the COVID crisis on Sunday, suggesting that the current rate of vaccination will put the U.S. on track for a full recovery in the not-so-distant future. By avoiding the feared "third wave" and with half the population being inoculated, the U.S. appears in position to return to normal soon.
â€œI believe that we will be about as close to back to normal as we can, and there's some conditions to that. We've got to make sure that we get the overwhelming proportion of the population vaccinated. When that happens, the virus doesn't really have any place to go,â€ he said.
That's music to the ears of Americans anxiously awaiting the green light to go back to work and school, as well of those growing weary of wearing masks and social distancing. Those CDC rules also may be changing: "... we do need to start being more liberal as we get more people vaccinated," Fauci added. "As you get more people vaccinated, the number of cases per day will absolutely go down.â€
Fauciâ€™s optimism is welcome news to the economy, which has been experiencing turbulence amid mixed news on jobs, inflation, growth and a soaring stock market. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has been able to keep things under control with historically low interest rates, but Fauci's words might really move the needle.
SEE WHAT FAUCI'S WORDS MEAN FOR PANDEMIC RECOVERY

The Prez vs. the press: The First Amendment came under fire from former President Donald Trump in ways unseen since the Watergate era, a new report shows, as the DOJ secretly obtained reporters' phone records and tried to hack into their emails during his tenure.
Three Washington Post reporters who had been investigating Russiaâ€™s role in the 2016 election had their records seized for their work, home and cell phones in the spring and summer of 2017. They were collected as part of the investigation into the Trump campaign's alleged dealing with Russian operatives . The dates coincide with a story the trio co-wrote about former attorney general Jeff Sessions' discussions with then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak.
The records included the numbers of all calls made to and from the numbers subpoenaed and the duration of those calls, but do not contain transcripts of what was said during them. A court order to obtain â€œnon-content communication recordsâ€ for their work email accounts was also made, though they ultimately werenâ€™t examined.
The news was met with strong reactions on social media as a major overstep by the administration for trying to suppress a free press.
FIND OUT WHY THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION INTERVENED

Social (media) distancing: The advent of social media came with claims that it would bring people closer together and harness a new-found sense of unity. Two decades later, we couldn't be farther apart.
With platforms like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram allowing people all over the world to communicate relatively unfiltered in real time, the idea that such technology would help us learn about and respect one another seems like one of the biggest backfires since new Coke.
The concept was right about one thing; at a time when Democrats and Republicans are at each other's throats like seldom before, both sides agree that social media is partly to blame for the divide. Nearly two in three Americans say social media has been a divisive force. Ironically, that same ratio admits to using social media every day.
The poll also uncovered some interesting findings about how different demographic groups use and view social media. It seems politics and religion aren't the only things dividing Americans.
FIND OUT WHAT YOUR DEMOGRAPHIC GROUP HAD TO SAY

Markets

DJIA	34,742.82	-0.10%
S&P 500	4,188.43	-1.04%
Nasdaq Composite	13,401.86	-2.55%
Japan: Nikkei 225	29,240.71	-0.94%
UK: FTSE 100	7,123.68	-0.08%
Crude Oil Futures	64.83	-0.14%
Gold Futures	1,836.30	-0.07%
Yen	108.88	0.03%
Euro	1.21	0.04%
* As of market close

Just say neigh

Baseball and football have been through the steroid scandals, and the Olympics and cycling have endured countless doping scandals. But now we learn that even our favorite four-legged athletes are using illegal drugs.

Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit tested positive for a banned substance following a winning performance at the Run for the Roses last weekend. Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has been suspended by Churchill Downs pending an investigation by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, and the horse could be stripped of its history-making victory.

Post-race analysis showed Medina Spirit tested positive for 21 picograms of betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory steroid medication not allowed to be used within 14 days of competition. Baffert denied treating the colt with the medication and said he will investigate the test results to determine how the substance got into the horse's system following the race.

"I got the biggest gut punch in racing for something I didn't do," said Baffert, who claimed his record seventh Kentucky Derby victory pending the investigation. "It's disturbing. It's a complete injustice to the horse."

And to the betting public in a race that saw millions change hands unfairly.

SEE IF MEDINA SPIRIT WILL GET TO RUN FOR THE TRIPLE CROWN

Surprise splashdown

In case you missed it ... all that really matters is that it missed you.

We're talking, of course, about the wayward Chinese rocket that finally reentered the Earth's atmosphere and plunged safely into the Indian Ocean early Sunday morning. The out-of-control rocket had been circling the planet ever since the Chinese launched its new space station last week and lost command of the 22-ton rocket just outside the Earth's orbit.

Beijing had been playing it cool during the days of concern about when and where the rocket would fall, saying it would land in the ocean. That's about 3-to-1 odds since the surface of the planet is nearly 3/4 water. The gamble seemingly paid off and an international incident was avoided, but it's one more point of contention in the in the growing U.S- China rivalry.

"Spacefaring nations must minimize the risks to people and property on Earth of re-entries of space objects and maximize transparency regarding those operations," NASA said in a statement. "It is clear that China is failing to meet responsible standards regarding their space debris."

SEE THE TENSE MOMENTS LEADING UP TO THE SPLASHDOWN

'Saturday Night Elon'

About the same time people around the world were keeping their eyes on the sky for the falling Chinese rocket, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk was dropping a bombshell of his own in hosting "Saturday Night Live."

Musk revealed in the opening monologue that he has Asperger's Syndrome, a neurological disorder that seemingly might explain his singular focus and social awkwardness. However, Musk overcame it in an episode that humanized the eccentric billionaire, including an appearance by his mother and some offbeat sketches that were in his wheelhouse.

Everything didn't go exactly Musk's way, however, in a segment of "Weekend Update," in which he jokingly attempted to explain Dogecoin. The skit ended with him agreeing that it was a "hustle," and investors must have taken the punchline seriously as the cryptocurrency fell 30%.

There were also some touching tributes to Mother's Day as the cast read jokes with their moms while musical guest Miley Cyrus sang a classic.

CHECK OUT ALL THE HIGHLIGHTS FROM MUSK'S 'SNL' DEBUT