What A Day

Another 6.6 million people filed for unemployment benefits last week, meaning that more than 16 million jobs have been lost in the last three weeks. That puts more pressure on Congress to sort out more economic relief. The White House is reportedly going to announce a coronavirus-economic task force to look into when the economy can be re-opened. 

Then, we're joined by comedian and writer Jamie Loftus for headlines: new jack Bob Dylan tops the Billboard charts for the first time, Biden makes concessions to the left, and Maryland engineers turn breast pumps to ventilators.

Senator Bernie Sanders has dropped out of the 2020 presidential race, but his ideas may live on. Vice President Joe Biden is now the presumptive democratic presidential nominee. We look at how we got here.

Then, we talked to Clare Malone, senior political writer at Five Thirty Eight, about the Defense Production Act - and why the administration may not fully understand it.

And in headlines: Nicaragua's missing president, detainees released, and why President Trump thinks now is a good time to mine the moon.

Lawmakers are considering a second relief package to provide assistance to people who were left out of the last bill. Some also want to add a rent moratorium, Medicare and Medicaid expansion, and more. We talk to Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) to learn about those efforts.

And in headlines: a naval secretary steps down after comments about commander Brett Cozier, the UFC moves its octagon to a private island, and historians uncover one of the earliest uses of the F-bomb.

Wisconsin will be moving forward with in-person voting today, despite efforts to postpone the election for the sake of public health. We check in on what’s happening there and in other states set to vote soon. Plus, we interview Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes about the election and what this means for November.

And in headlines: the ACLU sues to block parts of Puerto Rico’s coronavirus curfew, chaste pandas mate in Hong Kong, and the Mississippi governor makes time to honor fallen racists.

We interview Keri Blakinger, a reporter at The Marshall Project who covers prisons, on how jails and detention centers are managing release of inmates to prevent the spread of coronavirus, and how the urgent push to get people out is affecting former inmates. 

Government officials say the coming two weeks could be the most difficult yet as some states approach their potential peaks for COVID-19. Other states have begun to ramp down. We discuss that as well as new demographic data that paints an early picture of who is disproportionately affected by the virus.