We start on Friday, June 5th, President Trump gets a surprisingly huge win when the Labor Department reports that the U.S. unemployment rate declined to 13.3 percent in May with 2.5 million new jobs added after the rate had skyrocketed to 14.7 percent in April from the coronavirus pandemic. Economists originally forecasted that the unemployment rate would increase to around 20 percent.
Meanwhile, Trump directs the Pentagon to remove 9,500 troops from Germany, a move that reportedly reflects the growing tensions between Washington and Berlin over the dispute of military spending and other matters relating to global security.
He then visits the medical supply company, Puritan Medical Products, in Maine. His visit later caught scrutiny from the media after it was reported that Puritan had to discard its entire output of testing swabs during Trump’s tour since he and some of his staff did not wear facemasks. Puritan later clarified the report saying that they only discarded some of their product.
Trump weighs in on the controversy over New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees, who earlier in the week, said that he will never agree with anybody disrespecting the American flag in regards to NFL players protesting during the national anthem. Trump criticized Brees for apologizing, writing on Twitter, saying that he “should not have taken back his original stance on honoring our magnificent American Flag. OLD GLORY is to be revered, cherished, and flown high.”
Saturday, June 6th, as tens of thousands of people take to the streets of DC and cities around the world to protest against police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s death, the New York Times reports that a handful of prominent Republicans won’t support President Trump in his re-election bid, including former President George W. Bush, who later denies it, and Utah Senator Mitt Romney.
Sunday, June 7th, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who served under George W. Bush, announces he’s endorsing former Vice President Joe Biden for president, saying that President Trump has “drifted away” from the Constitution. Meanwhile, Biden continues to lead Trump in the polls, hitting the 50% threshold.
Monday, June 8th, days after Trump received good news from the May jobs report, the National Bureau of Economic Research says that the U.S. economy slipped into a recession in February. It’s the first economic downturn since 2007 to 2009.
Tuesday, June 9th, Trump stumbles on Twitter, delving into a conspiracy theory about the 75-year-old Buffalo protester who was shoved by the police and hit his head on the pavement. Trump experienced his first ever Twitter ratio, where replies vastly outnumbered likes and retweets, signaling that his tweet was being roundly condemned.
Meanwhile, at least nine states recorded a spike in coronavirus hospitalizations since Memorial Day. In spite of a second spike of coronavirus cases, President Trump has pledged that there will not be a second shutdown of the economy.
Wednesday, June 10th, President Trump announces that he won’t be changing the names of a number of military bases named after Confederate generals, including Forts Bragg, Hood, and Benning.
Thursday, June 11th, General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, formally apologized for being present during Trump’s controversial photo op in front of St. John’s church right by the White House.
While the economy is performing far beyond expectations during a global pandemic, it might not be enough to save Trump in November. In the last week, according to Gallup, job approval numbers dropped 10 points, indicating that when it comes to handling a crisis involving police brutality and racial injustice, a growing number of Americans aren’t liking what they’re seeing.
