Trump says US likely 'passed the peak' of coronavirus cases
President Donald Trump said Wednesday the United States is past the worst of the coronavirus pandemic and that he'll announce guidelines for reopening the economy on Thursday.
“It is clear that our aggressive strategy is working,” he told a news conference. “The battle continues however the data shows that nationwide we've passed the peak on new cases.”
Trump added that “these encouraging developments have put us in an exceedingly strong position to finalize guidelines for states on reopening the united states.”
He said he would discuss this in a news conference on Thursday, “announcing guidelines.”
Facing a hardcore re-election in November, the Republican president has been bullish on reopening the world’s most significant economy immediately.
On Monday, he threatened to invoke his “total” power to force state governors to check out his directives on reopening, prompting an outcry.
He backpedaled on the comment the following day, saying he had not been going to put “any pressure” on governors to reopen.
“We’ll be checking states, some states much earlier than others,” Trump said during his Wednesday briefing. “We think a few of the states can start prior to the deadline of May 1.”
“We’ll be the comeback kids, most of us.”
Anthony Fauci, the veteran US pandemic expert, said in a televised interview Sunday that parts of the country could get started easing restrictions in-may, but cautioned that reopening wouldn't normally work such as a “light switch.”
THE UNITED STATES has been battered by the coronavirus, with practically 633,000 confirmed cases, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University, by far the highest number on the globe.
The virus has claimed almost 28,000 lives throughout the country - also the world’s highest.--AFP
