National security adviser Robert O’Brien said the United States will make a decision on whether to ban travel from Brazil on Sunday.
The number of COVID-19 virus cases in Brazil has been skyrocketing over the past month. Cases have yet to peak in large cities such as Sao Paulo, and hospitals have been struggling to keep up with patients. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro does not support shutting down cities or regions over the virus, leading many experts such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, to signal concern about the region.
During a Sunday interview on CBS’s Face the Nation, O’Brien said the Trump administration will decide shortly whether to ban all travel from Brazil to prevent its outbreak from harming U.S. citizens.
“We’re concerned about the people in the southern hemisphere and certainly the people of Brazil. They’re having a rough go of it. We’ve had a rough go of it,” he said. “As far as travel to Brazil goes, and I’m sorry for the long intro to that, I think we’ll have a 212(f) decision today with respect to Brazil just like we did with the U.K. and Europe and China.”
“We hope it will be temporary. But because of the situation in Brazil, we are going to take every step necessary to protect the American people,” he added.
NEWS: The Trump Administration is looking at cutting off travel from Brazil amid #coronavirus pandemic, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien tells @margbrennan. See more of O’Brien’s interview at 10:30 am EST today on @FacetheNation pic.twitter.com/IUo21QeYob
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) May 24, 2020
O’Brien also noted that the U.S. will consider travel bans on other South American countries on a “case-by-case basis.”
Under Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, President Trump is allowed to ban travel from certain countries if they could harm U.S. security. The president has regularly touted his ban on travel from China in the early days of the pandemic as a lifesaving success.
Bolsonaro and his delegation from Brazil met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago just as the coronavirus pandemic was hitting the U.S. in early March. The meeting concerned many after it was revealed that one of Bolsonaro’s staff members tested positive for the COVID-19 virus days later.
