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Only two US states, Vermont and Missouri, have reported drops in the average number of coronavirus cases reported in the past week. The outbreak is emerging almost everywhere.
Connecticut and Florida lead the nation, with increases of 50% or more. Another 27 states increased between 10% and 50%, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. More than 8.1 million cases have been confirmed in the US, resulting in the deaths of nearly 220,000 people. On Saturday, the university confirmed another 57,519 cases and 711 deaths.
In the Midwest, states like Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin are seeing sharp increases in the number of cases, coming from public health officials for the reopening of schools and universities in major cities.
On Sunday, US Health Secretary Alex Azar blamed the increase in cases on “mitigation fatigue,” before acknowledging that more older people should have worn masks at a Trump campaign event held in the interior of Florida on Friday.
“Cases are increasing,” Azar told NBC’s Meet the Press. “We are seeing this happen because we are doing a colder climate and we are losing that natural social distancing that occurs when being outdoors.”
Donald Trump visited two hotspots this weekend, declining to talk about the surge at rallies in Michigan and Wisconsin. Michigan reached more than 2,000 daily cases Thursday and Friday, and in Wisconsin weekly cases reached the sixth highest total since the pandemic began.
Pressured by a Wisconsin radio station for sending the wrong message, Trump defended holding large demonstrations.
“I’m not a big believer in the shutdown,” Trump said, noting that his campaign primarily rallies outdoors, with crowds that are mostly masked. The president told reporters that he “did not see anyone without” a mask.
But reporters on the ground paint a different picture, with attendees blatantly ignoring health advice. Thousands of attendees gathered without social distancing and without masks.
The campaign has handed out Trump-labeled masks to participants selected to sit behind the president, from whom it was announced last month that he had contracted the virus. Doctors have since insisted that the president tested negative and is clear to campaign.
On Sunday, Trump tweeted a rare acknowledgment that cases are on the rise in the US But it also expressed an often discredited theory that coronavirus surges can be directly attributed to increases in testing.
“The United States shows more cases than other countries,” Trump tweeted. “No country in the world tests at this level. The more you test, the more cases you will report. Very simple!”
Mixed messages have come from the administration and campaign staff. Former New Jersey Governor and Campaign Surrogate Chris Christie, for example, has pleaded with Americans to wear masks, after spending eight days in the hospital. But on Sunday, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel appeared to downplay the increase.
“I think it’s incredibly contagious,” he told ABC’s This Week. “I think people are getting sick and they don’t know where. The president who takes that swift action from the start is putting our country in a better place to fight this terrible virus. “
Negotiations on economic relief are still stalled. Democrats have set a 48-hour deadline for talks to produce legislation, while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said the Senate will vote on a Republican bill before the election.
Also on ABC, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi criticized Republicans for eliminating funding for testing and tracing in their proposed legislation, noting that “communities of color have more deaths than the white population.” .
“A Hispanic child is eight times more likely to go to the hospital with Covid than a white child,” he said. “A black kid, five times more likely to go to the hospital for that. That’s because we haven’t addressed the issue. “
When asked to confirm reports that she had not spoken directly to Trump in over a year, Pelosi sidestepped the question. He also declined to commit to having a conversation with the president directly after any agreement on a Covid aid bill.
The top Democrat-elect said she wanted a bill passed before the Nov. 3 election, but said the deal would have to come within 48 hours for that to happen.
“I’m optimistic because, again, we’ve been coming and going about all of this,” he said.
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