1/ The number of confirmed U.S. deaths from Covid-19 surpassed 600,000 – 15 months since the onset of the pandemic. The U.S. Covid-19 death toll is more than 200 times higher than the number of lives lost on Sept. 11, and higher than the number of American soldiers killed in combat during the Vietnam War, World War I, and World War II combined. The U.S., however, is now averaging 375 deaths per day – down from more than 3,000 per day in January and reaching their lowest point since March 2020 – due to the availability of effective vaccines. More than half of the U.S. population has received at least one shot of a Covid-19 vaccine and 43% of the population is fully vaccinated. The White House, meanwhile, plans to host a July 4th “independence from virus” bash as the CDC declared the so-called delta variant, which was first detected in India, a “variant of concern.” The delta variant accounts for 9.9% of cases in the U.S. (ABC News / Wall Street Journal / Associated Press / NBC News / NPR / CNN / Axios)

2/ A National Institutes of Health study suggests that the coronavirus may have been circulating in the U.S. as early as Dec. 24, 2019 – weeks before the first confirmed infection in the country. Nine people who had donated blood between Jan. 2 and March 18, 2020, tested positive for antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, according to the NIH report. (Washington Post / New York Times)

3/ The FBI warned lawmakers that QAnon “digital soldiers” could be compelled to shift “towards engaging in real-world violence” as they come to “no longer ‘trust the plan.’” Instead of abandoning the conspiracy theory after QAnon predictions failed to materialize, a FBI threat assessment concludes that followers might seek to harm “perceived members of the ‘cabal’ such as Democrats and other political opposition” as they take control of the movement. “The participation of some domestic violent extremists who are also self-identified QAnon adherents in the violent siege of the U.S. Capitol on 6 January underscores how the current environment likely will continue to act as a catalyst for some to begin accepting the legitimacy of violent action,” the unclassified FBI assessment says. (CNN / New York Times)

4/ The White House released a national strategy devoted to addressing domestic terrorism. The 32-page strategy calls for increased funding for the Justice Department and FBI to hire analysts, investigators, and prosecutors; improving information-sharing between the federal government and state and local partners as well as with social media companies; and addressing the long-term drivers of domestic terrorism, such as systemic racism. “We cannot ignore this threat or wi...