Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Monday, July 6, 2020:

COVID-19 THE LATEST: NYC enters phase 3 today, though without indoor dining. Personal care services like nail salons and spas will be allowed to reopen. Both New York and New Jersey are seeing small upticks in new cases, while officials in Texas, Florida and Arizona attributed the explosive growth in cases there to reopening too early. NPR

COVID-19: THE AIRBORNE DEBATE: A group of 239 scientists around the world have written an open letter to the WHO, urging the organization to acknowledge the growing body of evidence that suggests the virus is airborne and can infect people more easily than originally thought when it comes to indoor activities, especially when there’s poor ventilation -- and not just from sustained face-to-face exposure. NY TIMES

TRUMP REELECTION MESSAGE: President Trump test drove a new re-election message over the holiday weekend, warning about a “new far-left fascism” rooted in monument vandals who want to “end America.” The messaging came by way of a pair of dark and divisive speeches at the White House and Mount Rushmore, in which he only mentioned the pandemic in passing. REUTERS

COLUMBUS STATUE TOPPLED: A statue of Christopher Columbus in Baltimore’s Little Italy neighborhood became the latest controversial monument to get torn down. Protesters toppled the statue, which had been up for 30 years and served as a tribute to the city’s Italian-American community, and dumped it in the Inner Harbor. BALTIMORE SUN

EPSTEIN ASSOCIATE NABBED: Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime confidant Ghislaine Maxwell is currently in a New Hampshire jail, awaiting extradition to New York where she’s charged with sex crimes and perjury. New details have emerged from the FBI raid that led to her arrest last Thursday, in which armed agents reportedly used spy planes to track her whereabouts to a secluded estate in the mountains. INDEPENDENT

REDSKINS NAME DEBATE: The push to get the Washington football team to change its name and mascot has gained significant steam, with the front office now saying it “will undergo a thorough review of the team’s name.” Team owner Dan Snyder has come under renewed pressure from fans, players and sponsors to retire the moniker that has long been derided as racist. Here’s a list of some of the new name ideas circulating: CBS SPORTS

UBER BUYING POSTMATES: Uber is expected to announce today that it is buying Postmates for $2.65 billion in an all-stock deal. Uber has been trying to expand its food-delivery business as its core ride-hailing service has suffered during the pandemic. The company tried and failed to buy GrubHub, and has been in talks with Postmates ever since. Uber would likely combine Postmates with Uber Eats. BLOOMBERG

BASEBALL SEASON: The surreal 2020 baseball season is getting closer, with players returning to ballparks for summer workouts ahead of a July 23 opening day. It hasn’t gone smoothly. At least 38 players and personnel have tested positive for the coronavirus as of Friday, when the MLB released its first round of test results. Two more vets, David Price and Felix Hernandez, said they’d opt out of the season. And Yankee pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is recovering after he got drilled in the head with a line drive during a socially-distanced practice. FORBES

YEEZY 2020? Kanye West set social media on fire over the weekend when he announced on Twitter that he’s running for president, supposedly this year. Kim Kardashian gave her husband a retweet, while Elon Musk replied: “You have my full support!” Given the obstacles to getting on the ballot this late, many suspect it’s a stunt. PEOPLE

SPOTTED...

...Serena Williams and her new doubles partner, daughter Olympia, practicing together: SEE PICS

...Lady Gaga in a studded Chromatica face mask, urging her fans to “Be yourself, but wear a mask”: SEE PIC

...Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former fixer, dining al fresco in Manhattan while he’s supposed to be serving his jail sentence at home: SEE PICS

IN MEMORIAM: NICK CORDERO: The Broadway star Nick Cordero has died of COVID-19 complications, his wife, Amanda Kloots, announced. He was 41. Kloots had been keeping fans updated on the ups and downs of her husband's recovery for 95 days. In addition to Kloots, Cordero is survived by their one-year-old son, Elvis. CNN

LEFTOVERS: SUPER SATURDAY: While the U.S. marked its 244th birthday on Saturday, the UK celebrated the reopening of pubs across the country for the first time in months. Dubbed Super Saturday, Brits came out in droves to enjoy their first pints since the lockdowns began. Police in London spent the weekend dispersing crowds and breaking up illegal parties, with one sergeant saying that a second wave “won’t be long in the making.” SEE PICS

Listen to the N2K Podcast! Looking for more context and analysis on the big stories of the day? Check out our podcast! Hosts Jill and Carlo break down the headlines, every weekday morning Listen on Apple or Spotify, or watch on YouTube, and send us your feedback

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