Your Wednesday Evening Briefing |
Good evening. Here’s the latest. |
 | | Chandan Khanna/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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1. The U.S. is hitting new coronavirus peaks. |
Case numbers we’re tracking are rising in 27 states, mostly in the South and West, including Florida, Texas and Arizona, which have recorded new daily highs. The surge is a result of worsening conditions across much of the country, not just increased testing. Above, a testing site in Miami. |
 | | Sean Rayford/Getty Images |
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2. Murder indictments in Ahmaud Arbery’s killing. |
A Georgia grand jury indicted three white men for chasing, detaining and fatally shooting Mr. Arbery, a black man who had been running in a South Georgia neighborhood. |
His death, in February, prompted nationwide protests, particularly after a graphic video of his shooting, taken by one of the suspects, was released online. |
“If black lives are to truly matter in America, this nation must move beyond slogans and symbolism,” she writes. “It is time for this country to pay its debt. It is time for reparations.” |
 | | Saul Loeb/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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3. A divided panel orders an end to Michael Flynn case. |
The unusual order came as a surprise in the twisting drama surrounding Mr. Flynn, who twice pleaded guilty to lying to F.B.I. agents about his conversations in December 2016 with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. |
The hearings are part of a broader effort by House Democrats to scrutinize the Justice Department under Mr. Barr, who is to testify next month. |
 | | Olivier Douliery/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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4. The global economic downturn is looking worse. |
“We are definitely not out of the woods,” an I.M.F. official said. Markets fell sharply. |
Around the world, governments that had appeared to tame the pandemic are adjusting to the reality that the disease seems to be here to stay. But in a shift away from damaging lockdowns, they are looking for targeted ways to keep local outbreaks from becoming powerful new waves. |
5. Biden has opened up a big lead. |
It’s among the most dismal showings of Mr. Trump’s presidency. Most stark may be Mr. Biden’s towering advantage among white women with college degrees. He has also narrowed Mr. Trump’s advantage with less-educated white voters. Here’s a look at the poll’s findings. |
In a possible sign of the president’s waning popularity, a 24-year-old real estate investor, Madison Cawthorn, has won a Republican nomination in North Carolina, unexpectedly defeating Lynda Bennett, who had been endorsed by Mr. Trump. |
 | | Josh Edelson/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
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6. Bayer will pay $10 billion to settle Roundup cancer lawsuits but will keep the weed killer on the market. |
The company said the money would cover an estimated 95,000 U.S. claims — many filed by homeowners and groundskeepers — that Roundup causes cancer, and includes $1.25 billion to deal with potential future claims from users who develop non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. |
Bayer inherited Roundup’s legal problems when it bought Monsanto in 2018. Now the world’s largest producer of seeds and pesticides, Bayer still faces at least 25,000 claims from plaintiffs who have not agreed to be part of the settlement. |
 | | Vincent Tullo for The New York Times |
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7. The upheaval over race has hit the Met, America’s biggest art museum. |
Keith Christiansen, above, the Met’s chairman of European paintings, praised a French archaeologist who during the French Revolution tried to defend historic monuments from “revolutionary zealots,” asking on Instagram, “How many great works of art have been lost to the desire to rid ourselves of a past of which we don’t approve?” |
An uproar erupted from staff members who saw it as critical of protests over monuments and the Black Lives Matter movement. Mr. Christiansen took down the post and then closed his Instagram account. |
 | | Karsten Moran for The New York Times |
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8. The 50th annual New York City Marathon has been canceled. |
Tens of thousands of registered runners will be able to choose a refund or defer their entry to one of the next three years. Organizers will also announce details of a virtual marathon in July. |
Berlin also called off its marathon, and Boston canceled in May. Of the other major international marathons, Tokyo went forward in March with only elite runners, and races in London and Chicago remain scheduled for the fall, though organizers have yet to commit. |
 | | Jeremy M. Lange for The New York Times |
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9. Lending money to family can be a minefield. |
Some of the tens of millions of Americans who’ve lost work in the pandemic are turning to their families for help. Dramas are not far behind. |
Above, Mariel Beasley, co-founder of the Common Cents Lab at Duke University, suggests reflecting on whether you’d be OK if you never got the money back. |
“People tend to be over-optimistic,” she said. “They plan a best-case scenario, where they say, ‘Great, they’ll be back to work in two months and they’ll be able to pay me back 50 bucks a month.’ They forget unexpected expenses and setbacks can happen.” |
 | | Erik Endress |
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10. And finally, how to travel in relative isolation. |
The travel industry is pivoting with new pandemic-aware offerings: from self-guided rowing tours to wilderness camping in tents, yurts and tree houses, or a road trip in a top-of-the-line bus modeled on rock-star tours. You can also rent a llama to carry your load on a trek in Colorado. Above, a private campsite in the Adirondacks. |
More Americans are spending time outdoors, according to a recent survey, with adult bike sales soaring 121 percent and sales of fishing licenses in Vermont going up 50 percent. |
Have an adventurous evening. |
Your Evening Briefing is posted at 6 p.m. Eastern. |
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