[ad_1]
US President Donald Trump has denied downplaying the severity of Covid-19, despite admitting in a recorded interview that he did.
At a televised event with voters, Trump said he was “building” in response.
The statement contradicts comments Trump made to journalist Bob Woodward earlier this year, when he said he had reduced the severity of the virus to avoid panic.
Trump also reiterated Tuesday that a vaccine is likely to be available “in a few weeks” despite skepticism from health experts.
No vaccines have yet been made in clinical trials, leading some scientists to fear that people are putting policy on health and safety and that this is driving vaccine production ahead of the presidential election. November 3.
More than 195,000 people have died with Covid-19 in the US since the start of the pandemic, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Meanwhile, Scientific American magazine on Tuesday endorsed a presidential candidate for the first time in its 175-year history by endorsing Democratic candidate Joe Biden for the White House.
The magazine said Trump “rejected the evidence and the science” and described his response to the Covid-19 pandemic as “dishonest and clumsy.”
What did Mr. Trump say?
At Tuesday’s town hall meeting held by ABC News in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Trump was asked why he “reduced the severity of the pandemic that is believed to do more harm to families.” they have low income and ethnic minorities. “
Trump responded: “I have not underestimated it. In fact, in many ways, I have sustained the epidemic in terms of action.”
“My actions are very strong,” he said, citing the ban on people from China and Europe from entering the United States earlier this year.
“We would have lost thousands more if he hadn’t put a ban in place,” Trump said. “We save many lives doing that.”
The US ban on foreign visitors from China went into effect in early February, while the ban on visitors from European countries went into effect in March.
However, Trump is accused of delaying taking steps to stop the virus.
An epidemiologist told the New York Times in February that restricting travel to and from China is a colored emotional or political response.
Michael Osterholm, an epidemiologist and director of the University of Minnesota Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, told the newspaper what is known as “losing cows to build a barn.”
In a statement Tuesday, Scientific American said that despite warnings in January and February, Trump “did not develop a national strategy to provide defense equipment, coronavirus testing or medical guidance.” clearly.”
What did Trump say to Woodward?
Woodward, the main protagonist in exploring the 1972 Watergate scandal and one of America’s most prestigious journalists, interviewed Trump 18 times between December and July.
In February, Trump said in an interview with Woodward that he knew more about the severity of the plague than he did publicly.
According to the recording of the call, the president said that the corona virus was more dangerous than the flu.
“It spread through the air,” Trump said on the tape. “It’s always harder to touch. People don’t have to touch everything. Right? But air, you just breathe air and that’s how the virus spreads.”
“So it is a very difficult disease to treat. It is a very delicate disease.”
In late February, Trump said the virus was “almost under control” and the case would soon be near zero. He also publicly hinted that the flu was more dangerous than Covid-19.
Speaking on March 10, Trump said, “Just calm down. It will all be over.”
Nine days later, after the White House declared the pandemic a national emergency, the president told Mr. Woodward: “I always wanted to mitigate the severity of the epidemic. I still want to, because I don’t want to. Create a panic.”
What else did Trump say in Philadelphia?
Trump, who is running for re-election, has repeated his earlier statement that the virus will go away on its own because people will “develop … a community mindset,” including the mention of “immunity.” community “when enough people develop resistance to disease to stop its spread.
He was also skeptical of his administration’s scientific advice on the use of the mask.
“The concept of the mask is good, but … you keep touching it. You touch your face. You touch the dishes. There are people who don’t think the mask is good,” he said.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (USCDC) strongly encourages the use of masks.
Trump made conflicting comments about the masks, on the one hand, that they are contemptuously unsanitary and, on the other, called on Americans to “show their patriotism” by wearing them.
The question and answer session with voters undecided who to vote for on Tuesday comes as the presidential war enters its final stage.
Trump’s Democratic rival Joe Biden is scheduled to join a similar show in Pennsylvania that airs Thursday.
Pennsylvania is considered a very important state in the race for the White House.