President Donald Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci are expressing concern about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) mulling over the idea of reopening schools in the near future.
During the White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing on Friday, the president was asked about DeSantis’ previous comments. He applauded DeSantis for his leadership but said he would have to “look at the numbers.”
While he does prefer to leave state decisions to governors, the president also noted there is a possibility he could overrule DeSantis’ order if he ultimately does decide to reopen schools prematurely.
“He’s doing a great job as governor,” Trump said. “Ron DeSantis, I had read where he’s thinking about opening up the schools earlier than the date — the end of the month. I’d have to look at the numbers, but, again, I like to allow governors to make decisions without overruling them.”
Trump also noted that if he ultimately disagreed with DeSantis’ decision, he could overrule him. Then, he gave Fauci the floor to offer his expertise.
See Trump and Fauci’s remarks below (starting at 1:12:30):
Dr. Fauci, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director, — who noted that he was not “specifically speaking about Florida” — bluntly answered the reporter’s question, clarifying American statistics for the coronavirus.
“People under 25 have died of the coronavirus disease in the United States of America,” Fauci said.
Although children are presumed to have a lower risk of being infected with coronavirus, Fauci noted that returning to school “will” increase their chances of children getting infected.
“If you have a situation where you don’t have a real good control over an outbreak and you allow children together, they will likely get infected,” Fauci said.
Trump and Fauci’s comments follow DeSantis’ press briefing on Thursday where he mulled over the idea of reopening schools.
The Florida governor faced backlash after claiming data suggested no person under the age of 25 has died from complications of the coronavirus, as previously reported on IJR.
“This particular pandemic is one where I don’t think nationwide there’s been a single fatality under 25,” DeSantis said. “For whatever reason, it just doesn’t seem to threaten, you know, kids.”
DeSantis also noted that reopening schools could be possible based on children having low-risk factors.
The governor’s communications director said, “The safety and well-being of school children, teachers and staff will always be of the utmost importance when arriving at this decision.”
According to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there have been six coronavirus deaths of individuals between the ages of 15 and 24, as well as one death of a child between one and four years old, and another between the age of five and 14.
As of Saturday morning, Florida has more than 17,900 confirmed coronavirus cases statewide.