200,000 Dead

The death toll in the United States from the coronavirus pandemic passed 200,000 today. More deaths have been announced in the United States than in any other country, and reports of new coronavirus cases have climbed in the United States and parts of Europe in recent days, suggesting an uncertain new phase in the crisis, as the NYT reports.

Dive Deeper: Listen to the new Coronavirus Crisis Update podcast in which CSIS’s Steve Morrison and I talk with Dr. Chris Murray about IHME’s recent, startling (and controversial) forecast that the United States would experience a dramatic surge in Covid-19 infections and deaths by year’s end that will exceed the peak moments of April.

Perilous Turning Point for UK

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said today that Britain has reached a "perilous turning point" in the coronavirus pandemic as he introduced new curfews on pubs and restaurants in England and encouraged remote working—restrictions that could remain in place for six months. Johnson’s restrictions come a day after top government scientists in Britain warned that the United Kingdom could face 50,000 coronavirus cases a day by mid-October if it stays on its current trajectory, as the Washington Post reports.

U.S.- China Tensions at UN

President Donald Trump told the United Nations General Assembly today that China must be held accountable for having “unleashed” Covid-19 on the world, prompting Beijing to accuse him of “lies” and abusing the UN platform to provoke confrontation, as Reuters reports.

CSIS Executive Education

CSIS's Risk and Foresight Group is hosting a new global executive education program that weaves together important issues, trends, and revolutions that government and business leaders must understand as they position themselves for the next 25 years. Register for the course here.

Video Shorts

Check out CSIS’s new series of video shorts: “Testify,” "What's Happening," "Preview," and “High Resolution.” And don’t forget to subscribe to the CSIS YouTube Channel!

In That Number

200,000

The death toll from the spread of the coronavirus in the United States passes 200,000.

Source: Reuters

Critical Quote

“America is fulfilling our destiny as peacemaker, but it is peace through strength.”

— President Donald Trump

iDeas Lab

The CSIS Economics Program estimates international financial institutions and regional financing arrangements have disbursed $124.2 billion to meet the massive financing needs generated by the Covid-19 pandemic and its economic fallout.

The Andreas C. Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS enhances our research with the latest in cutting-edge web technologies, design, and multimedia.

Optics

(Photo credit: Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images.) The Bobcat Fire, now one of the largest fires in Los Angeles County's history, burns in the Angeles National Forest.

This Town Tomorrow

Tomorrow, at 9:45 a.m., CSIS will release a pre-recorded discussion exploring how to reduce risks in global supply chains.

And, at 1:00 p.m., CSIS's Americas and Economics Programs hosts an event exploring how the Covid-19 pandemic is affecting the economic outlook in Latin America and the role of private and official sectors in responding to this unprecedented health and economic crises.

Then, at 4:00 p.m., the Atlantic Council holds a webinar on the role the UN General Assembly plays in bringing new attention to Latin American and Caribbean countries as they struggle to recover from Covid-19 and the resulting economic contraction.

Video

The CSIS Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics today held a panel discussion for the release of its most recent report, The China Economic Risk Matrix, which explores how changes in government credibility can have a significant impact on systemic stability in China. Watch the full event here.

Podcasts

On the latest episode of China Power, host Bonnie Glaser episode examines the trajectory of Chinese military developments and national strategy with guest Chad Sbragia, who currently serves as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for China.

Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.

Smiles

“Sometimes the songs that we hear are just songs of our own.”

During the 30 years that the Grateful Dead toured the world, they performed more than 2,300 shows. A signature that ran through their performances was the pairing of certain songs played consecutively without break. These couplings would take on mythical status as the years went by. “Scarlet Begonias” combined with “Fire on the Mountain” became known by Dead Heads as “Scarlet Fire” or shortened even further for tape labeling purposes to, “Scar Fire.” “China Cat Sunflower” would flow into “I Know You Rider” to become “China Rider” in Dead parlance. And “Estimated Prophet” transitioned into “Eyes of the World” to create “Estimated Eyes.” There are other famous combos but you get the drift. Of this practice, Jerry Garcia said, “For me, the relationship between one [song] and the other is always obvious...I like that invisible thing, I like that sort of sleight-of-hand approach.”

After the debut of “Estimated Prophet” in 1977, it would be paired with “Eyes of the World” 172 times in concert. Here’s a clip of “Estimated Eyes” from ’77, one of the Dead’s greatest years performing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2VprgXxwlQ.

I invite you to email me at [email protected] and follow me on Twitter @handrewschwartz

The Evening is my daily guide to key insights CSIS brings to the events of the day. It is composed with the External Relations team: Emma Colbran, Caleb Diamond, and Kendal Gee.