Tensions rise over masks as virus grips smaller US cities
The county itself does not have a mask mandate, nor does the state. South Dakota has suffered through the countryโs worst rate of COVID-19 deaths per capita over the last week, but Gov. The City Council in Palmer, Alaska, rejected a mask mandate Friday for the community of 7,300 residents about 45 miles (72 kilometers) north of Anchorage. Many implored the City Council not to follow the steps of โliberalโ Anchorage in forcing residents to require face coverings. In Iowaโs Harrison County, 47 deaths have been attributed to the virus out of population of about 14,000.
Trump Cabinet members look to reassure battleground voters
With President Donald Trump confronted by skyrocketing joblessness and the coronavirus pandemic as he campaigns for reelection against Democrat Joe Biden, members of his Cabinet are busy making time in pivotal states. They are carrying a message to voters about what the Trump administration is doing for them. A Trump campaign spokesperson did not respond to questions about the Cabinet members' trips. Biden campaign spokesperson Michael Gwin accused the Trump administration of focusing on "scoring political points, not delivering for the people they work for. It was unclear whether the Trump campaign or the federal government paid for Bernhardt's costs on the trip.