January 1, Coronavirus Fears Crush Stock Market

This Day in History | 1983

The Final episode of M*A*S*H airs after 11 seasons. 

Good morning Middle Americans, 

How bad is it going to get?The panic, not necessarily the coronavirus itself, but the fear that it is created across the country. No one wants to get COVID-19 (the clinical name for the virus)  and yes, thousands of people have died from it. But at this point the impact of travel restrictions and other coronavirus related fears may be the bigger threat.  It will be very interesting to see how the politics shape up over the next few days, weeks, and months.  Remain calm and stay in formed by reading websites like this one. 

As for the politics of this, predictably Democrats are hitting President Trump for his selection of Mike Pence to lead the administration’s response efforts. Pence is taking fire for the way he handled the aids epidemic while he was the governor of Indiana. Bernie Sanders and other say Pence’s response to aids/HIV was to ‘pray it away’.

Finally today. It’s the pod cast no one is asking for, yet somehow it’s happening. Hillary Clinton, like everyone else is launching a podcast. The question is – who’s going to listen to it. 

Read all about it

– Fraser Dixon 

Dow Plunges 1,100 Points, Bringing Its Decline From a Record High to More Than 10%

(CNBC) – Stocks fell sharply in volatile trading Thursday as investors worried the coronavirus may be spreading in the U.S. A slew of corporate and analyst warnings on the virus dragged down the major averages, tipping them into correction territory.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 1,190.95 points, or 4.4%, to close at 25,766.64. The S&P 500 slid 4.4% to 2,978.76 while the Nasdaq Composite dropped 4.6% to 8,566.48. The Dow had its worst day since February 2018 while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 posted its biggest one-day loss since August 2011.

It was also the Dow’s biggest one-day point decline in history, surpassing Monday’s 1,031-point drop. The S&P 500 also closed below 3,000 for the first time since last October.

See the latest here

First U.S. Coronavirus Case of Unknown Origin Confirmed in Northern California, CDC says

(Sacramento Bee) – Officials with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the nation’s first coronavirus case of unknown origin Wednesday in Northern California in the latest sign of the virus’ rapid spread.

“It is a confirmed case. There is one in Northern California,” CDC spokesman Scott Pauley told The Sacramento Bee just before 4 p.m. Wednesday.

“the individual is a resident of Solano County and is receiving medical care in Sacramento County. The individual had no known exposure to the virus through travel or close contact with a known infected individual,” California Department of Public Health officials said in a news release Wednesday evening. State public health officials in Sacramento, citing the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said the case is the first person-to-person transmission of the COVID-19 virus.

Read more here

Sanders Rips Pence: His last Response to an Epidemic Was to ‘Pray’ It Away

(The Hill) – Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) slammed the Trump administration for picking Vice President Pence to lead the response to the coronavirus outbreak. 

“Concern about the coronavirus continues to grow, yet the Trump administration’s response has been inadequate, misleading, and dangerous,” Sanders said in a statement Thursday.

“By picking Vice President Mike Pence to lead the administration’s response to the pandemic, Trump has not only chosen someone completely unqualified, but the president has made clear that he’s more concerned about his own politics than the health and safety of the country.”

Read more here

Coming to a Podcast Near You: Hillary Clinton

(Politico) – The yet-to-be-titled show will be co-produced by audio giant iHeartMedia, which produces original content such as Will Ferrell’s “The Ron Burgundy Podcast,” and, through iHeartRadio, is also a major distributor for the biggest names in conservative talk radio. They include a who’s who of right-wing commentators who have pilloried Clinton and her family over the years: Rush Limbaugh, Mark Levin, Glenn Beck, Ben Shapiro, and Sean Hannity. The Joe Rogan Experience, whose host recently endorsed Bernie Sanders, is one of iHeartRadio’s most popular shows.

But it was Clinton’s recent experience with two other famous interviewers that influenced the kind of show she wanted to create. Last fall, Clinton and her daughter Chelsea recorded an episode of Conan O’Brien’s audio show, “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.” They were promoting The Book of Gutsy Women, their co-authored collection of stories about women who have inspired them.