The U.S. has reported its highest one-day total for pandemic coronavirus cases so far, with a new poll released on Friday indicating that Donald Trump continues to lose support as a result of the alarming trend.
According to data collected by Johns Hopkins University, 77,255 new cases were reported in the U.S. on Thursday, marking the first time that the number of daily cases in the country has exceeded 70,000.
The record is the highest one-day total for any country during the pandemic thus far. The United States is by far the most affected country worldwide in terms of number of cases and deaths, with more than 3.5 million confirmed infections and more than 138,000 deaths.
The southern and western states of the country’s “sun belt” have been particularly affected, with teams of military doctors deployed this week in Texas and California to help hospitals flooded with coronavirus patients.
In California, military doctors, nurses, and other health care specialists were deployed to eight hospitals facing staff shortages amid record numbers of cases. In Houston, an 86-person Army medical team worked to take over a wing of the United Memorial Medical Center.
Texas reported 10,000 new cases for the third consecutive day on Thursday and an additional 129 deaths. Meanwhile, California reported its highest total of confirmed cases in two days, nearly 20,000, along with 258 deaths in 48 hours. There are more than 8,000 people in hospitals who have tested positive for or are suspected of having the coronavirus.
The Phoenix medical examiner’s office received portable storage coolers and ordered more to handle an influx of bodies reminiscent of New York City at the height of the pandemic earlier this year.
Meanwhile, the president’s handling of the crisis continues to attract widespread scrutiny. A Washington Post-ABC News poll found that 38% of Americans approve of Trump’s handling of the pandemic, up from 46% in May and 51% in March. Disapproval has simultaneously increased to 60%, from 53% in May and 45% in March.
Critics have accused the president of politicizing the pandemic, repeatedly undermining the advice of public health experts and pressuring Republican governors to follow suit while concentrating on the November elections. More recently, the Trump administration has pushed for the reopening of schools as soon as possible as part of its efforts to boost the economy, despite security concerns.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, which has more than 1.7 million members, told The Guardian that she believes the effort is “reckless” and could lead to an exodus of people outside of the teaching profession. .
Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the country’s leading public health experts, campaigned in the media this week to present his assessments of the pandemic after the White House began reporting against him, accusing him of being wrong. in the early days of the pandemic.
“I think for the most part you can trust respected medical authorities,” Fauci said in a virtual forum at Georgetown University in Washington this week, responding to a question referring to the White House, providing reporters with a list of what he described as his past mistakes. .
“I think I’m one of them, so I think you can trust me. But I would stick with respected medical authorities who have a history of telling the truth, who have a history of giving information and policies and recommendations based on scientific evidence and good information. ”
At least half of the 50 states have adopted requirements to wear masks or other facial covers. But wearing masks remains part of the political debate, despite calls from health experts for Americans to wear them. Atlanta Democratic Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms He said a lawsuit filed this week by Georgia Republican Governor Brian Kemp showed he was “putting politics on the people.”
Speaking to the Today show, Bottoms said: “This filing of a lawsuit is just plain weird, frankly.”
Jessica Glenza contributed to this report.
