"The war has changed" against COVID-19

New mask guidance comes alongside an infrastructure breakthrough [View this email online]( [NPR]( [Mask guidance at Grand Central Terminal]( Spencer Platt/Getty Images The big picture: This is not normal A [$1.2 trillion deal on an infrastructure bill]( would normally be a, well, big effing deal, to borrow a phrase. But these are not normal times. That was made all the more apparent when [a new internal CDC memo]( found this week that the delta variant of the coronavirus [is as contagious as chickenpox]( the country is seeing “breakthrough cases” of vaccinated people getting sick and being able to spread the disease, and it could be worse than the alpha variant that shut down much of the world last year. “Acknowledge the war has changed,” read an apparent talking point from the memo. That’s a sobering thought for Americans, [who had grown more optimistic]( that a semblance of normal was approaching. They were going out more and believed as long as they were vaccinated, they would be OK. But this week there was an average of about 67,000 cases a day, up from a low average of just over 11,000 in mid-June. That’s a six-fold increase, and [the trend line is going up](. To be clear, the country is still far below the peak of 250,000 daily cases in January, the variant is spreading fastest in [places with the lowest vaccination rates]( and unvaccinated people are getting far sicker on average than those who are vaccinated. But many places across the country are reinstituting indoor mask mandates and companies are moving back return-to-work dates. Not to mention, there is still the issue of millions of Americans who are not vaccinated. President Biden [has gotten high marks]( when it comes to his handling of the pandemic, and the White House would love to be moving on and touting this new infrastructure deal to show the country opening up and investing in its future. But that strength is being threatened by the uncertainty surrounding this latest surge — and the last thing Biden wants is for those July Fourth celebrations that seemed to mark the end of the worst of the pandemic to turn into Labor Day shutdowns. — Domenico Montanaro, NPR’s senior political editor/correspondent --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- [Statues on Capitol Hill]( VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images ICYMI: Top stories New Biden vaccine rules: President Biden will require [federal workers and contractors — more than 4 million Americans — to either get vaccinated]( or face strict testing and mask-wearing protocols while on the job. Biden also directed the Defense Department to look into how and when to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of required vaccinations for the military. Jan. 6 hearing: Four police officers who responded to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol [testified before the House select committee this week]( on the physical, mental and emotional turmoil from responding to the attack. [Here are four takeaways from the hearing](. U.S. Capitol statues: Ninety-five percent of the sculptures in the halls of the U.S. Capitol are of men. A bipartisan group of senators, led by Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar, [is hoping to change that]( starting with statues honoring former Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sandra Day O'Connor. Asylum case changes: The Biden administration is moving forward with a plan [to allow Department of Homeland Security asylum officers]( to take over cases on the southern U.S. border, taking them out of backlogged immigration courts. The new measure would vastly expand the number of officers who can determine whether a migrant is eligible for asylum. Insurrection defense: The Justice Department says [it won't defend Alabama GOP Rep. Mo Brooks in court against a civil lawsuit]( accusing him of helping to incite the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. The department said Brooks was engaged in campaign activity when he participated in the rally — which was not within the scope of his duties as a member of Congress — so he doesn't qualify for legal immunity for his actions. — Brandon Carter, NPR Politics social media producer --------------------------------------------------------------- [Jan. 6 rioters]( Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images Going deeper Vaccine incentives: Among the actions President Biden took this week in light of the growing threat of the delta variant was to encourage states to pay people $100 for getting vaccinated. Do those kinds of incentives work? Yes ... and no. [Here’s what we know]( about various efforts around the country to incentivize vaccination. Struggles with riot prosecutions: The federal investigation into the Jan. 6 insurrection is so big that the amount of evidence is overwhelming prosecutors. Officials are also having trouble finding prosecutors to assign to the cases in the first place. [Here’s more]( on why the Justice Department is struggling to bring these riot cases to trial. — Dana Farrington, NPR Politics digital editor --------------------------------------------------------------- [Map of transmission]( Ruth Talbot for NPR The shot: Should you mask up? This week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that fully vaccinated people [should go back to wearing masks indoors]( if they live in a place with “substantial” or “high” coronavirus transmission. (The guidance for people who are unvaccinated remains the same: Always mask up indoors.) So what’s the level of transmission where you live? [See the rates in your county here](. — Dana Farrington, NPR Politics digital editor [See the map]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. --------------------------------------------------------------- What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: [nprpolitics@npr.org](mailto:nprpolitics@npr.org?subject=Saturday%20Newsletter%20Feedback) Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can [sign up here](. Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Daily News, Code Switch, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Politics emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]