President Trump said that adherence to the government’s social distancing guidelines through April 30 is a “matter of life and death.”
Following the latest set of “30 Days to Slow the Spread” guidelines released Sunday, Trump said at the White House press briefing Tuesday, is critical to stopping the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected over 184,000 people in the United States and killed at least 3,720, according to a tracker maintained by Johns Hopkins University.
“Our country is in the midst of a great national trial,” he said.
The outbreak has not abated since the initial 15-day period of social distancing recommended by the White House ended, and many states and Washington, D.C., have instituted stay-at-home orders, some of which stretch to the summer.
Though Trump said extending the guidelines to 30 days is crucial to mitigate the further spread of the virus, he is not likely to give up efforts to put people back to work as soon as possible.
“We had the best unemployment numbers and employment numbers that we’ve ever had by far,” Trump said Tuesday. “And, in one instant, we said we have no choice but to close it up.”
Previously, Trump had suggested that he would push states and cities to ease restrictions on business and socializing in order to boost the economy. Instead, he dropped that possibility on the basis of arguments presented by the coronavirus task force’s public health officials.
