White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany reiterated that the Trump administration will continue pushing for schools to reopen fully this fall, despite resistance from state leaders and public health experts.
“The president has said unmistakably that he wants schools to open,” McEnany told reporters Thursday. “And when he says open, he means open in full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school.”
President Trump has been pushing state government leaders for weeks to reopen schools fully before the next academic year begins. Last week, he threatened to cut off federal funding to those school districts that do not open. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, who was supportive of state and local school leaders’ decision to close schools in March, also said last week that schools “must fully open” and be “fully operational.”
Children who test positive for COVID-19 are more likely to experience mild symptoms, but teachers and older staff members at schools, as well as parents, are susceptible to serious illness.
“We don’t think our children should be locked up at home with devastating consequences when it’s perfectly safe for them to go to school,” McEnany said.
“The science should not stand in the way of this … The science is on our side here, and we encourage for localities and states to just simply follow the science, open our schools,” she added.
School districts are in the process of constructing plans to reopen schools on schedule while keeping students and teachers safe. Public schools will likely need increased funding from state governments to put social distancing measures in place, such as creating and furnishing additional classroom space.
A new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that 3.3 million seniors live with school-age children, compounding the risks of reopening schools without putting proper safety and social distancing measures in place.
Adults aged 65 and older are the most vulnerable to COVID-19. Almost 8 in 10 deaths from COVID-19 were among those age 65 and older, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The number of coronavirus cases in the United States has surpassed 3.5 million, and more than 138,000 people have died. The U.S. is now averaging 63,000 new cases a day, twice as many as in April, when epidemiologists hoped the pandemic had reached its peak.
Trump is pushing Republicans to include a payroll tax cut in the next economic stimulus package to pass out of Congress, signaling that he will not sign a new package into law without one, Politico reported.
Trump has pushed for a payroll tax cut in the past, but Congress never included it in several rounds of economic stimulus bills. White House spokesman Judd Deere said Thursday that Trump called on Congress “to pass this before and he believes it must be part of any phase four package.”
Negotiations on the next bill and what provisions it will include will start next week when both chambers come back into session after a two-week recess. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has not indicated whether he favors including the tax cut, and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley has openly opposed the tax cut.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis and Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson are the latest governors to issue statewide mask requirements in public indoor spaces Thursday, making the total number of states to enact mask mandates 28 in addition to a mandate in Washington, D.C.
In Colorado, coronavirus cases have been increasing for four straight weeks, increasing the tally to over 38,000 infections. When he announced the new rule, which will be in effect for at least 30 days, Polis said that “the data is beginning to be alarming.” The mandate will go into effect Friday.
Hutchinson announced a similar mask mandate, which will go into effect Monday and will require people to wear masks in indoor public spaces and in outdoor spaces where social distancing is impossible. Hutchinson said the mandate for masks comes as COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in the state are “numbers that speak for themselves and indicate that we need to do more.” Arkansas has confirmed about 30,300 coronavirus cases and 335 deaths.
Coronavirus cases in hot-spot states increased again Thursday. In Florida, cases ticked up 13,695, boosting the total number of infections to 315,775. More than 150 people died in Florida, making the total number of deaths 4,782.
Arizona reported 3,250 new cases and 58 additional deaths, moving the state’s totals to 134,613 cases and 2,492 fatalities.
Texas reported 10,291 new cases and 129 new deaths Thursday, increasing state totals to 292,656 cases and 3,561 deaths.
Gov. Greg Abbott announced that his Public Safety Office will provide $41 million in federal funds to assist cities and counties throughout the COVID-19 response. The first round of awards, totaling $7 million, will be distributed this week.
“I thank our federal partners for their support and ongoing collaboration as we work to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in Texas,” Abbott said. “The State of Texas will continue to work with the federal government to help meet the needs of our cities and counties as they respond to COVID-19.”
