In other news, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden told shareholders that peak demand for oil is already behind us in 2019 and won't ever recover. They're cutting 10,000 jobs in a shift toward other energy sources. Exxon Mobil is cutting 14,000 jobs for the same reason.
Meanwhile, the White House coronavirus task force has been privately telling states to lock down parts of their economies while Trump and his chief of staff, Mark Meadows, publicly say lockdowns don't work.
Finally, NBC News obtained emails that show Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's wife, Susan Pompeo, has been using the State Department's security service like her own maintenance service.
Many involve routine matters like logistics and scheduling for official events that would involve coordination with the secretary's spouse in any administration. But other requests, such as seeking assistance with planning a multiday visit for an elite group of young executives from Kansas, appear to be less directly connected to advancing the State Department's core mission.
They include maintenance requests for the house the Pompeos rent on a Washington-area military base, which Susan Pompeo appears to be routing through the State Department's Diplomatic Security Service. Emails show special agents from the service's Secretary of State Protective Division updating Susan Pompeo about repairs to the HVAC system in 2018 and to the porch and stairs in 2019.
"The dryer isn't hooked up. ... I think you told me someone was coming to fix that?" Susan Pompeo said via text message to a State Department official, whose name is redacted, in September 2018. "Ma'am – On it, I was told it was fixed. Let me get you an answer," the official responded by email hours later.
One thing about the rich and shameless that consistently shocks me is just how low-class and tacky they are in private. I wouldn't behave this way even if I had money.
I'm signing off early today because I physically feel like roadkill. It's dark and raining and I've had trouble keeping my eyes open all day. I'm sure I'll be fine tomorrow. I just need a good night's rest.