President Donald Trump took to Twitter to place blame on the “fake news media” and Democrats for allegedly instilling fear in Americans.
He wrote in a tweet on Monday, “The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, is doing everything within its semi-considerable power (it used to be greater!) to inflame the CoronaVirus situation, far beyond what the facts would warrant.”
He continued quoting the U.S. surgeon general saying, “The risk is low to the average American.”
The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, is doing everything within its semi-considerable power (it used to be greater!) to inflame the CoronaVirus situation, far beyond what the facts would warrant. Surgeon General, “The risk is low to the average American.”
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 9, 2020
This wasn’t the first time Trump appeared to place the blame elsewhere for issues related to the coronavirus.
During a press conference, Trump told reporters that the Obama administration made a decision on testing that was “detrimental” and that the Trump administration reversed that decision as IJR previously reported.
Surgeon General Jerome Adams appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Jake Tapper to discuss the Trump administration’s response, as well as the current status of the coronavirus.
Tapper asked Adams if he has expressed his desire for White House officials to “share the facts and be honest.”
Adams replied, “Well this is a novel virus, it’s a new situation, and the messaging quite frankly is hard.”
Earlier on, Tapper pointed out the spread of the virus and the growing number of cases across the U.S. to which Adams replied, “Now we are shifting into a mitigation phase which means we’re helping communities understand you’re going to see more cases.”
He continued, “Unfortunately you are going to see more deaths but that doesn’t mean we should panic.”
Watch the interview below
NBC reports a rise in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. is over 550 as of Sunday, which includes 22 deaths. According to CNN, at least eight states have declared a state of emergency, as of Sunday. Stocks also took a hit as more investors are preparing for the economic fallout.