The editor-in-chief of Lancet calls it, “a crime against humanity.” Bill Gates (one of the organization’s biggest funders) says, “Halting funding for the World Health Organization during a world health crisis is as dangerous as it sounds.” Of course, these concerns are valid. But Trump’s threats against WHO (a far from perfect organization), like his attacks on China (surprise, they’re not always honest with their citizens or the world), are not really about the targets of the president’s ire. They’re about shifting the blame, and more importantly, the discussion, away from the administration’s own failings. Graeme Wood in The Atlantic: “The move is simple. When Trump is ensnared in controversy, when he is being asked straightforward, damning questions and his inquisitors do not stop asking them, he says or does something outrageous to change the subject. It works every time. It is working now.” (In other words, forget the how and why about WHO and focus on the WTF about Trump.)

+ WaPo: Trump’s ugly new blame-shifting scam spotlights his own failures.

+ It’s not about being right. It’s about flooding the zone with enough falsehoods to exhaust people and render them unable to know what to believe. Because of endless statements downplaying the virus and visible failures to prepare America and its health systems, the challenge to confuse will be greater than ever. But that doesn’t mean they won’t try. McCay Coppins has been tracking the disinformation echo chamber for a long time. Here’s what he’s seeing now. Media-bashing robocalls, chloroquine Twitter trolls, briefing-room propaganda—how the president and his allies are trying to convince America he was right all along.

+ We needed rubber gloves, they gave us rubber checks. The messaging campaign is so deep, it even extends to the $1200 checks that millions of Americans await. WaPo: In unprecedented move, Treasury orders Trump’s name printed on stimulus checks. “It is standard practice for a civil servant to sign checks issued by the Treasury Department to ensure that government payments are nonpartisan.” So, Trump’s signature will only appear on the memo side of the check, not the signature block (which increases the likelihood the check will actually clear). He’s gonna want to sign everything now.