President blames 'slippery' ramp for trouble walking while health experts issue coronavirus warning over his Tulsa rally

Trump's handling of the coronavirus outbreak was 'almost criminal', says Biden

 Joe Biden ratcheted up some of his criticism of Donald Trump on Friday, saying that his handling of the coronavirus was "almost criminal", that he has "bungled" the economic fallout, and that he has exacerbated racial tensions in the country.

During an hour-long town hall with the labour union AFSCME, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee warned that the US will likely see a resurgence of the coronavirus and that Mr Trump is not doing enough to prepare.

"This is almost criminal, the way he's handled this," Mr Biden said of Mr Trump's leadership on the coronavirus. "There's going to be some form of second wave, I hate to tell you this," he added later.

Matt Viser reports: 

Fox News removes doctored images of George Floyd protests after being publicly corrected

 Fox News on Friday removed manipulated images that had appeared on its website as part of the conservative outlet's coverage of protests over the killing of George Floyd, which have occasioned peaceful assemblies in cities across the country and, in Seattle, given rise to an unusual experiment in self-government.

The misleading material ran alongside stories about a small expanse of city blocks in Seattle that activists have claimed as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone.

Isaac Stanley-Becker has the story:

Trump economic adviser says people should 'probably' wear masks at rally

Donald Trump's top economic adviser Larry Kudlow was asked by CNN's Jake Tapper about the president's rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma. 

Mr Tapper asked the adviser if attendees should wear masks to protect themselves and others from the coronavirus. 

"Well, okay. Probably so," Mr Kudlow responded.

The Trump campaign has not said they would require attendees to wear masks, and social distancing guidelines is not expected as the president has pushed for a packed rally. Attendees were asked to sign a waiver when purchasing tickets that stated they cannot sue the campaign if they contract the virus. 

Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma told CNN he would be attending the rally in Tulsa on 20 June. But he could not confirm to CNN if he would wear a mask or not, saying he hasn't decided yet. 

Republican politician loses party support after officiating gay weddinga

A Republican congress member who angered social conservatives in his district when he officiated a gay wedding lost his party's nomination.

Virginia representative Denver Riggleman lost a GOP convention on Saturday that was done via drive-thru because of the coronavirus pandemic. He was defeated by Bob Good, a former official in the athletics department at Liberty University.

The report here: 

Top black congressman says Democrats want to 'deconstruct' US policing not 'defund the police'

 The top black US congressman has signalled in clear terms he does not support calls to "defund the police," despite a wave of activism calling for such measures in the wake of the death of George Floyd and other black people during incidents involving police.

"Nobody is going to defund the police. We can restructure the police forces -- restructure, reimagine policing. That is what we are going to do," House Minority Whip James E Clyburn, the third-ranking Democrat in the chamber, said in an interview with CNN on Sunday.

"The fact of the matter is the police have a role to play. What we've got to do is make sure that their role is one that meets the times. One that responds to these communities that they operate in," Mr Clyburn said.

Griffin Connolly reports: 

At least seven Minneapolis police officers resign amid George Floyd protests

At least seven Minneapolis police officers have resigned from their department following the unrest over police brutality after George Floyd died last month. 

Another six or so are in the process of leaving, a City of Minneapolis spokesperson confirmed with CNN. 

"As of Wednesday, HR has processed separations of employment for seven MPD employees since Memorial Day. That number does not include the four officers involved in the George Floyd case. The reason any employee gives for separating from the City is not public information," the spokesperson said.

Fox News fall for Monty Python joke when covering Seattle protests

 Fox News' coverage of the Seattle protests has taken another hit after the news organisation quoted a Reddit Monty Python joke as real for its viewers.

Martha MacCallum, host of Fox News' The Story, was covering Seattle's Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) for her viewers, which included claims from the cable news channel that there were leadership problems within the organisation.

Our story here: 

Ben Carlson sidesteps Trump's claims he's the best president for black Americans since Lincoln

US Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson declined to endorse Donald Trump's claim that he has been the best president for black Americans aside from Abraham Lincoln, though Mr Carson did tout some of Mr Trump's work for minority communities.

Mr Carson, a former neurosurgeon and 2016 Republican presidential candidate, is Mr Trump's sole black cabinet member.

"To get into an argument about who has done the most probably is not productive, but it is good to acknowledge the things that have been done," Mr Carson said in an interview with ABC News on Sunday.

Griffin Connolly reports: 

Cuomo slams New Yorkers and bar owners for not following social distancing guidelines

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had harsh words for New Yorkers following reports of areas breaking social distancing laws amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

During his Sunday press briefing, Mr Cuomo said the state received 25,000 complaints of reopening violations made businesses and residents. These violations included bars providing open containers for residents that they can then drink on the streets and residents not wearing masks. 

One video went viral on social media this weekend of a large gathering in New York City's East Village neighbourhood on Friday evening outside multiple bars. 

Mr Cuomo said it was up to local officials to push areas to follow rules to prevent another wave of the coronavirus pandemic. 

New York has been one of the strictest states in reopening because it was hit the hardest by the novel virus in the US. New York City just entered into Phase One on Monday – which involved the reopening of infrastructure, manufacturing, and curtsied pickup for retail stores. 

The strict rules appear to be working for the state, though, as it continues to report lower hospitalisation and deaths from the novel virus. This contrasts states like Texas that are seeing their highest Covid-19 hospitalisations to date. 

Senator praises Trump for moving rally amid backlash

Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, who is the only black Republican senator, was asked by CBS News on Sunday about President Donald Trump initially scheduling his Tulsa rally on June 19. 

The date, also known as Juneteenth, commemorates when federal orders declared all slaves in Texas were free. Texas was the last state to follow Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation order. 

Mr Scott said he did not think the Trump campaign was initially aware of the significance of the date. 

"With my understanding is he moved the date once he understood the Juneteenth," Mr Scott said about the president. "I'm not sure that the planners on his inner-circle team thought about 19 June, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and race riots ... The president, fortunately, had some folks that used to work with me, Ja'Ron and other who, I think. helped to inform and educate the president on why Tulsa, Oklahoma, 19 June was not the best day to do it on it." 

He added: "And to his credit, he moved it, So that is good news." 

The rally would now be held on 20 June.