President Donald Trump preached calm on Saturday after the first U.S. death from coronavirus was confirmed in Washington state and the government ratcheted up travel warnings for several countries where the virus is spreading.
The president, flanked by his top health officials, said that Americans should not be alarmed by the latest news. “If you are healthy, you will probably go through a process and you’ll be fine,” he said. Fifteen people have recovered from the virus, he added.
Trump also asked that media and politicians “not do anything to incite the panic, because there is no reason to panic at all. This is something that is being handled professionals.”
Asked if he regrets referring to a coronavirus “hoax” this week, the president said it was a “hoax referring to the action [political rivals] take trying to pin this to someone. The hoax is on them.”
Trump ally Clay Fuller advances in Georgia fight for MTG’s former seat
DOJ leader swats back DNC election security suit, mocks demands as kid’s ‘tooth fairy’ wish list
Former Kentucky cheerleader indicted on manslaughter charge after newborn son found dead in closet
Sheriff running Nancy Guthrie case responds after report reveals unseemly exit from first policing job
Three cargo ships damaged by ‘projectiles’ in Strait of Hormuz
US Moves Against Iranian Mine Ships, Sinks Over a Dozen: Reports
Texas conservatives tout record-breaking school choice signups after long battle with teachers unions
Scott moves to bypass teachers unions, send federal school funds straight to parents if classrooms close
Wanted on 59 Counts of Rape and Child Sex Crimes: One of Those Illegals Dems Care More About Than Americans Was Just Nabbed by NC Cops
New Twist in Epstein Guard’s Saga – Large Mystery Deposits Showed Up in Her Bank Account Leading Up to Just Before His Death, Interesting Google Searches Also
Spanish Court Orders Madrid to Create Registry of Doctors Who Refuse to Perform Abortions
Former Freedom Caucus chair Bob Good blasts Trump’s endorsement record: ‘Trump IS the problem’
Tom Cotton puts Biden on notice while demanding answers on draining of nation’s oil stockpile
Johnson pushes reconciliation 2.0 with no clear plan and Trump’s focus elsewhere
Lindsey Graham’s war rhetoric complicates Trump’s push to calm MAGA base
Vice President Mike Pence announced that the administration raised its travel warnings for certain areas of South Korea and Italy to the highest level and was expanding travel restrictions to include any foreign national who has visited Iran within the last 14 days. Trump also boasted that the government had stockpiled 43 million masks for health professionals.
There are now 22 cases of coronavirus in the U.S., CDC Director Robert Redfield said at the briefing.
Trump said the person who died was a woman in her 50s, although Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee identified the death as a man when he expressed condolences to the family.
“It is a sad day in our state as we learn that a Washingtonian has died from COVID-19. Our hearts go out to his family and friends,” Gov. Jay Inslee said. “We will continue to work toward a day where no one dies from this virus.”
The death is neither one of the cases that the state confirmed late Friday night, a county spokesperson said.
There are at least four other people on the west coast who have contracted the virus, dubbed Covid-19, without a clear connection to recent travel or someone else with the infection. Washington said late Friday that besides the woman in her 50s, who had recently traveled to South Korea, a teenager north of Seattle had also tested positive.
