Trump says the coronavirus is the Democrats’ ‘new hoax’

[beijingwalker]

Trump says the coronavirus is the Democrats’ ‘new hoax’
PUBLISHED FRI, FEB 28 20207:32 PM EST
UPDATED 3 HOURS AGO

Thomas Franck

KEY POINTS

• President Trump says that Democrats are using the virulent coronavirus as a “hoax” to damage him and his administration.
• “The Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus,” he said from a campaign rally in North Charleston, South Carolina. “This is their new hoax.”
• The coronavirus, which began in Wuhan, China, has now killed more than 2,800 people worldwide and infected more than 80,000.
• The total number of cases in the U.S. was 63 as of the latest announcements, with most cases being former passengers on the Diamond Princess cruise ship and evacuees from Wuhan.

US President Donald Trump speaks during a “Keep America Great” campaign rally at Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio, on January 9, 2020.
Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images

President Donald Trump said Friday that Democrats are using the virulent coronavirus as a “hoax” to damage him and his administration.

“The Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus,” he said from a campaign rally in North Charleston, South Carolina.

“One of my people came up to me and said ‘Mr. President they tried to beat you on Russia, Russia, Russia. That didn’t work out too well.’ They couldn’t do it. They tried the impeachment hoax that was on a perfect conversation,” he continued.

“This is their new hoax,” he said, referring to the coronavirus.

The disease, which originated in Wuhan, China, has now killed more than 2,800 people worldwide and infected more than 80,000. The latest reports from the World Health Organization show the pace of new cases in China slowing, but jumping in South Korea, Japan, Italy, and Iran.

In the U.S., the Santa Clara Public Health Department announced a third case of coronavirus in the county Friday evening. The announcement brings the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in California to 10 and the total number of cases in the U.S. to 63, most of which were passengers on the Diamond Princess cruise ship and evacuees from Wuhan.

“We are magnificently organized with the best professionals in the world,” Trump said of the administration’s preparations to help contain the spread of the virus.


“We have to take it very, very seriously ... We are preparing for the worst,” he continued. “My administration has taken the most aggressive action in modern history to prevent the spread of this illness in the United States. We are ready. We are ready. Totally ready.”

In other headlines, a Google employee tested positive for the coronavirus, the company said Friday. New Zealand and Nigeria reported overnight their first coronavirus cases.

“We will do everything in our power to keep the infection and those carrying the infection from entering our country. We have no choice,” Trump said. “Whether it’s the virus we’re talking about or many other public health threats, the Democrat policy of open borders is a direct threat to the health and wellbeing of all Americans.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/28/trump-says-the-coronavirus-is-the-democrats-new-hoax.html

 

[beijingwalker]

At this critical moment, parties still pull no punches attacking each other...
Political parties should stop smearing each other to score a point, they should shelve their differences for now and work together to fight this common threat.

 

[khansaheeb]

The Hollywood portrayal of US medical centers is far from reality. Their urgent care facilities are packed at the best of times and if the Corona virus hits they won't be able to cope with the increased number of patients. Countless will die in the US, it seems only God's hands can save us.

 

[the_messenger]

For a country that spends 18% of GDP in healthcare, this remark is shockingly hilarious.

 

[beijingwalker]

Trump Criticizes Media for Coverage of Coronavirus
The president seeks to reassure the public while blaming the media and Democrats for trying to score points by exaggerating the threat of the outbreak.

PUBLISHED FRI, FEB 28 20209:46

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/28/us/politics/cpac-coronavirus.html

Media's coronavirus stories trying to hurt Trump, Mick Mulvaney says as he urges public to turn off TV
PUBLISHED FRI, FEB 28 20209:46 AM ESTUPDATED FRI, FEB 28 20201:22 PM EST

Kevin Breuninger

KEY POINTS

• White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney on Friday suggested that Americans should ignore media reports about the coronavirus amid fears of the deadly disease spreading into the U.S.
• Mulvaney, who also heads the Office of Management and Budget, also said that there will "probably" be school closures and transportation issues due to the impact of the virus.
• Mulvaney claimed that the media has only started paying close attention to the coronavirus because "they think this is going to be what brings down" President Donald Trump.

White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney suggested Friday that Americans ignore the media's coverage of the coronavirus, arguing that journalists are ratcheting up fears to try to hurt President Donald Trump politically.

Mulvaney, who also heads the Office of Management and Budget, also said that there will "probably" be school closures and transportation issues due to the impact of the virus.


"Are you going to see some schools shut down? Probably. May you see impacts on public transportation? Sure," Mulvaney said as he attempted to assure his audience that the Trump administration was on top of the virus.

He was interviewed Friday morning by Stephen Moore, Trump's onetime nominee for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland.

Mulvaney claimed that the media has only started paying close attention to the coronavirus because "they think this is going to be what brings down the president."

The Office of Management and Budget referred CNBC's request for comment on Mulvaney's remarks to the White House, which did not immediately provide a response.

The Trump administration imposed travel restrictions and quarantines in late January in response to the outbreak, which has spread to dozens of countries around the world and killed more than 2,700 people.


"Why didn't you hear about it?" Mulvaney asked at CPAC. "What was still going on four or five weeks ago? Impeachment, and that's all the press wanted to talk about."

The House impeached Trump in December on articles of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, both related to his dealings with Ukraine. The Senate acquitted Trump of both charges in early February.

"The press was covering their hoax of the day because they thought it would bring down the president," Mulvaney concluded. "The reason you're seeing so much attention to [the coronavirus] today is that they think this is going to be what brings down the president. That's what this is all about."

Mulvaney said he was asked by a reporter, "What are you going to do today to calm the markets?"

"I'm like, 'Really what I might do today [to] calm the markets is tell people turn their televisions off for 24 hours.'"

Still, the disease is "absolutely" real, Mulvaney said. But, he said, "You saw the president the other day — the flu is real."

"This is not Ebola ... it's not SARS, it's not MERS," Mulvaney said.

"We sit there and watch the markets and there's this huge panic and it's like, why isn't there this huge panic every single year over flu?" Mulvaney asked rhetorically.

"Are you going to see some schools shut down? Probably. May you see impacts on public transportation? Sure."

"But we do this, we know how to handle this," he said.

White House officials, along with Trump himself, have unsuccessfully called for calm amid the market's free-fall this week.

At a news conference Wednesday night, Trump announced that Vice President Mike Pence would be in charge of the U.S. response to the coronavirus. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, however, said he remains the chair of the coronavirus task force, and that Pence will be "helping" with the effort.

Trump also claimed without providing evidence that financial markets may be tanking because they are "very upset when they look at the Democrat candidates standing on that stage making fools out of themselves."

Seven Democratic presidential candidates met in Charleston, South Carolina, on Tuesday night for an often messy and chaotic debate, just days before the state's primary.

Trump said investors say, "'If we ever have a president like this' ... When they look at the statements made by the people standing behind those podiums, I think that has a huge effect, yeah."

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/28/tru...-ignore-coronavirus-news-to-calm-markets.html