Apr 06, 2020

Good morning. We hope that you are staying healthy, strong, and resilient during these challenging times. As the coronavirus continues to spread across the country, many are wondering when can life return to normal? Senior research fellow Peter Brookes breaks down what a light at the end of the tunnel looks like. Meanwhile, a growing number of media outlets are refusing to air the president’s daily briefings. Fortunately, The Daily Signal will continue to stream them live for you to see. Overseas, the measures that South Korea has implemented in response to COVID-19 have been held up as a model for the world. But these measures come with a severe cost to personal liberty. Heritage expert Bruce Klingner weighs in. Here at home, many Americans have extra time on our hands. If you want to use this time wisely by planning for the future, the Heritage Legacy Society has a free tool that can help. Keep reading for details. Lastly, don’t forget that you can find a full collection of Heritage’s research on the coronavirus here: heritage.org/coronavirus.

When Can Life Return to Normal?
Americans can’t wait for the restrictions on their movements and interactions—widely known as social distancing—to end. That’s completely understandable. The coronavirus crisis has widely disrupted modern life. While a firm date for the end of this biological battle in the United States is just unknowable at this point, it’s reasonable to ask: How will we know when we’re seeing some light at the end of the social distancing tunnel? Peter Brookes, a senior research fellow in Heritage’s Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy, writes that any decision to loosen social distancing restrictions, based on data, would indicate progress in the battle against COVID-19. “Similar dips in hospitalization and death rates, as well as improved recovery rates, would also be a welcome sign,” according to Brookes. Read Brookes' commentary on the four signs to monitor.

Watch LIVE: President Trump’s Coronavirus Task Force
Most major networks have stopped airing President Donald Trump’s daily coronavirus task force briefing. Outlets like the Washington Post, New York Times, and CNBC have even stopped sending reporters due to “health concerns and uncertain newsworthiness.” But The Daily Signal, Heritage's multimedia news outlet, is still airing them live on Facebook and YouTube every day. And hundreds of thousands of people are watching. Since the briefings began, nearly 1 million Daily Signal followers on Facebook have tuned in for Trump’s updates. Get your information straight from the source by watching his briefings on The Daily Signal's Facebook page or YouTube channel.

Understanding South Korea’s Coronavirus Response
South Korea was rightly praised for its well-organized and aggressive mitigation efforts in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Seoul implemented rapid and extensive testing, combined with high-tech monitoring and public notifications to identify and contain new cases. But while South Korea’s testing program has become the global gold standard, it comes at a potential cost in civil liberties that other nations may not seek (or be able) to emulate. “The South Korean government’s warrantless access to personal data enabled effective epidemic response, but with a Big Brother invasiveness that would be anathema to American standards of personal privacy,” writes Bruce Klingner, a senior research fellow in Heritage’s Asian Studies Center. Read Klingner’s full report to find out exactly why America can’t emulate South Korea’s pandemic response.

Forbes contributor Alejandro Chafuen of the Acton Institute has been ranking think tanks on their social media presence since 2014. And consistently, The Heritage Foundation has topped the list. That’s true again in this year’s rankings. Heritage maintains first place among free-market groups in Facebook and Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn followers. Heritage is also first in web traffic, according to Chafuen. Read the full report in Forbes.

Heritage hosted a webinar on the Defense Production Act, including its origins, how it works, what it allows the president to do, and how it can be used to fight COVID-19. Watch the webinar.

Thursday at 4:40 p.m. Allen C. Guelzo, a visiting fellow in Heritage’s Feulner Institute and Robert P. George, Princeton University's McCormick chair in jurisprudence and director of the James Madison Program, will host a virtual event to discuss successful cases of political leadership in times of crisis. Register for the event.

Here are highlights from Heritage experts on TV. This week they talked about the coronavirus, China, the stimulus package, the Constitution, and price gouging. Watch the clips.