Recapping Today's Coronavirus Task Force Press Briefing in Bulletpoints
By: The Executive Tea Staff
Today, we heard from the White House coronavirus task force for the first time in two months. Unsurprisingly, hearing VP Pence (who walks around without masks and is equally complicit is last week’s rally that was a disaster for social distancing) give guidance on taking coronavirus seriously was laughable, to say the least. Today’s press briefing comes as coronavirus cases are spiking in 30 states, notably in the country’s 3 largest states: Florida, Texas, and California.
Before we get into the recap, let’s note that this was the first time the coronavirus task force met in two months because Trump made the decision to stop daily briefings from the task force. Just this week, several of the nation’s top experts on coronavirus stated that they have not spoken to President in weeks - that’s really all you need to know about how seriously the White House has taken coronavirus.
Here’s some context:
The White House waited 2 months to take any action on COVID-19. Seriously.
At least 30 states are experiencing a resurgence of coronavirus cases.
Texas now has more patients hospitalized for coronavirus than ever before.
Florida broke their single-day record again with 8,492 new cases.
The CDC announced yesterday that COVID-19 cases might actually be 10 times higher than reported.
Trump and VP Pence do not wear masks in public. Trump even said last week that he thinks people wear masks ‘to signal disapproval of him’.
The Trump campaign ignored health experts and hosted a rally last week with thousands of people. 10 campaign staffers later tested positive for coronavirus.
And yet, Pence bragged today about ‘encouraging news’ and ‘remarkable progress’.
Now, you should understand why the White House is the furthest thing possible from a credible source for anything related to coronavirus (I mean, really just anything ever). There’s clearly a gap in the coronavirus guidance the administration is giving and the actions they’re actually taking.
Recap of today’s briefing:
Trump was absent.
While Dr. Fauci and other task force members wore masks, Pence did not.
Pence bragged that the U.S. has made ‘remarkable progress’ on coronavirus. The country reported 40,000 new coronavirus cases on Friday alone. The European Union has also even blocked U.S. travelers from visiting as a reaction to the nationwide case spikes.
VP Mike Pence called it ‘encouraging news’ that nearly half of new coronavirus cases are people under the age of 35.
Pence falsely claimed that the U.S. has "flattened the curve” on coronavirus cases, just one day after the country broke its single-day record for new COVID-19 cases
When pressed on the hypocrisy of urging Americans to be responsible amid coronavirus but hosting a rally last weekend, Pence answered with a word scramble: “The freedom of speech, the right to peacefully assemble is enshrined in the Constitution of the United States.” It’s worth noting that Trump had peaceful protestors tear-gassed in order to pose for a photo-op.
In other words, this administration thinks we’re stupid AF and expects us to fall for these lies. We won’t, because we’ve seen firsthand how disastrous the administration’s response to coronavirus has been.
