U.S. Coronavirus: Trump Mulls Fewer Briefings; New Relief Bill
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President Donald Trump did not hold a news briefing about the new coronavirus on Saturday, instead suggesting that his daily appearances were no longer “worth the time.”
Trump’s mulling to move away from the daily briefings came as elected officials on Sunday discussed another federal emergency relief bill that would include money for state and local governments.
“What is the purpose of having White House News Conferences when the Lamestream Media asks nothing but hostile questions, & then refuses to report the truth or facts accurately,” Trump wrote on Twitter Saturday night. “They get record ratings, & the American people get nothing but fake news. Not worth the time & effort.”
Trump’s tweet follows his suggestion at a recent briefing that an “injection inside” the human body with a disinfectant could be looked at to help combat the coronavirus.
Trump later backtracked on the comment by saying he was just being sarcastic, but Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan told ABC on Sunday that his state received “hundreds” of calls after the president’s briefing about whether ingesting household disinfectants could help treat the coronavirus.
“So, we had to put out that warning to make sure that people were not doing something like that which would kill people,” Hogan said to ABC.
Dr. Deborah Birx was in the White House briefing room when Trump made his comments on disinfectants, and on Saturday night she spoke about the likelihood of coronavirus cases and deaths decreasing in May.
“We believe that both the hospitalizations, the ICU need and, frankly, the number of people who have succumbed to this disease will be dramatically decreased by the end of May,” Birx, the White House coronavirus task force response coordinator, said on Fox News.
Birx Expecting Dramatic Decrease In Coronavirus Deaths By End Of May
Meanwhile on Sunday, elected officials were discussing a new federal emergency relief bill that would help state and local governments facing budget problems. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana, is proposing a $500 billion bill that would supply emergency relief aid to state and local governments.
Under the bill, one-third of the money would be awarded based on the state’s population size, one-third based on the number of coronavirus cases in the state and one-third based on a state’s revenue loss, Cassidy told CNN on Sunday morning.
“This is about supporting those small businesses by supporting cops, the firemen, the sanitation workers who allow those small businesses to stay in business. We have an ecosystem, we need to support it,” Cassidy said to CNN.
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also said Sunday there will another relief bill aimed at helping state and local governments facing budget deficits.
Pelosi: No More Virus Bailouts Without State Aid
“State and local governments have done their job magnificently. They should be impatient. Their impatience will help us get an even bigger number,” Pelosi told CNN.
In the food industry, the ripple effect of restaurant closures has produced both food shortages and vast waste. It’s a crisis of contradictions and, as Patch reports, the pressures have led to empty store shelves and unprecedented demand for food banks while”gallons and bushels of food and milk were thrown away elsewhere like garbage.”
In some cases, the coronavirus itself is responsible for the chaos. Outbreaks in meat plants have forced pig farms to choose to either raise pigs they can’t ship anywhere, or to kill them — what one pork producer called a “tragic choice.”
The food shortages are hitting at the worst possible time, as unemployment has surged. Food banks are expecting their own surge of demand, even as donations have dropped in the wake of shortages on grocery store shelves.
Food Rots As Grocery Shelves Remain Empty
Several states piloted by Democratic and Republican governors grow closer to a soft reopening this weekend, a move designed to breathe life back into their economies even as the national new coronavirus death toll passed 54,000.
The moves to reopen states have been criticized by public health officials as risky endeavors that could further the spread of the virus. While many hard-hit states appear to be muscling through the worst of it and even see some light at the end of the tunnel, reintroducing normality back to everyday life could wipe out the gains that came at a great cost.
Southern states like Georgia, Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee started loosening restriction to varying degrees. Other states, like Colorado and Montana, moved to follow suit.
The states flirting with reopening argue they need to inject life back into economies that were abruptly paused — some for well over a month.
President Trump has publicly fallen into both camps, most notably criticizing Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp for plans to reopen businesses such as nail salons and bowling alleys Friday, while also encouraging him to “do what is right” for Georgians.
Kemp has stood by his decision to loosen some restrictions. He tweeted an explanation about what would be allowed to open Friday — fitness centers, barbers and the like — and how they would still be restricted with social distancing and medical screenings. The list and explanation are here.
Georgia and other states will see additional restrictions loosened next week. Theaters, private social clubs and dine-in services at restaurants will be allowed to reopen by Monday in several states.
Also in recent White House related coronavirus news, Trump signed an estimated $484 billion relief package passed by Congress earlier in the week but warned he will not approve of any loan to the U.S. Postal Service unless it increased rates on Amazon and other internet companies.
The legislation is set to replenish the Paycheck Protection Program, add $75 billion to hospitals and $25 billion for more coronavirus testing.
“The Post Office is a joke,” Trump told reporters as he signed the relief legislation. “The Post Office should raise the price [of package delivery] four times.”
The Washington Post reports: “Trump and his allies have frequently claimed that higher package rates on Internet shipping companies — Amazon, in particular — could ease the Postal Service’s financial troubles. But higher package rates could hurt the agency by artificially raising its prices above those of United Parcel Service and FedEx, analysts say. Higher prices also could impact Amazon, which acts as both retailer and shipper, by forcing it pass off higher costs on its customers to compete.”
Numbers: Latest U.S. Confirmed Cases And Deaths
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