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George Floyd protests, coronavirus pandemic, NBA board of governors meeting: 5 things to know Friday

George Floyd's death: Trump lashes out; police precinct breached

Demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd’s death boiled over for a third straight night as protesters gained access to the Minneapolis Police Department’s 3rd Precinct building, forcing officers to evacuate. Tensions have been rising for days since the death of Floyd, a black man who died in police custody after a white officer pinned him to the ground under his knee. Early Friday, President Donald Trump lashed out on Twitter, calling Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey "weak" and labeling looters, who have damaged multiple businesses over the past few days, as "thugs." Twitter later put a public interest notice on that tweet, saying it "violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence." In an early Friday news conference, Frey pledged that police would continue to serve residents in the precinct and that the building was "just bricks and mortar."

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Partisan divide over economy grows, but Americans more worried about health

Americans see the coronavirus pandemic primarily as a health crisis rather than a financial one, but the government's role in fixing economic fallout is an increasingly political issue, a Public Agenda/USA TODAY/Ipsos poll released Friday says. Among the findings:

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  • Most Americans (62%) believe the government’s priority should be preventing the virus from spreading, but that number has dropped 10 percentage points from a March survey.

  • The share of Republicans who said the government should prioritize keeping the virus from spreading fell dramatically from 64% in March to 41% in May, while the number of Democrats remained stable.

  • Most Americans (69%) agree that the people protesting to reopen states are endangering the lives of others.

  • A majority of Americans support wearing face coverings in public (77%).

  • Americans are supporting one another, optimistic about their communities.

Virginia to require masks in indoor public spaces

Starting Friday, Virginia will join several other states in requiring face masks to be worn in public indoor settings. In accordance with an executive order signed by Gov. Ralph Northam, persons age ten and older must wear a mask or face covering at all times in retail stores, barbershops, restaurants, government buildings, on public transportation, or anywhere where people can congregate in groups indoors. Masks are not required while eating or drinking, during exercise, for children under 2 years of age, or for those who have a health condition that prevents them from wearing one. Northam said health officials, not law enforcement, would be in charge of enforcing the measure.

How and when will the NBA resume play?

Basketball officials may be closer to an answer on how to restart the NBA season after the Board of Governors meets on Friday. The NBA plans to elicit feedback and debate on varying proposals to resume the season at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando. They hope to have clarity on what one person considered "the best of bad options." The league will host games without fans, require repeated testing for COVID-19 and adhere to social distancing guidelines that various health officials have advised. The league has not established how much time it needs to finalize logistics following Friday’s meeting, but is exploring restarting the 2019-20 season in late July.

Lady Gaga's new album, 'Chromatica,' set for release

Get ready, monsters. Lady Gaga's upcoming album, "Chromatica," is set to arrive Friday. It was originally supposed to be released on April 10 but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Leading up to the album, Gaga has released singles "Rain On Me," featuring Ariana Grande, and "Stupid Love." A track list, released in April, also showed collaborations with Elton John and Blackpink. "I can't wait to dance with people to this music, I can't wait to just go into any space with a whole bunch of people, and blast this as loud as possible to show them how much I love them," Lady Gaga said during a conversation with Zane Lowe for Apple Music’s Beats 1.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: George Floyd protests, coronavirus pandemic: 5 things to know Friday