Coronavirus: Trump voices hope for ‘levelling-off’ in US hotspots

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52175746

Optimism from Dr Birx and Mr Trump contrasted with other leading US experts, including top advisor Dr Anthony Fauci, who earlier said the short-term outlook was "really bad".

 

How did coronavirus break out? Theories abound as researchers race to solve genetic detective story

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/06/us/coronavirus-scientists-debate-origin-theories-invs/index.html

A vacuum of knowledge about the origins of the new coronavirus ravaging the world has provided fertile ground for all manner of theories -- from the fantastic, to the dubious to the believable.

It was a bioweapon manufactured by the Chinese. The US Army brought the virus to Wuhan. It leaked -- like a genie out of a bottle -- from a lab in an accident. It took root at a wildlife market in Wuhan.

Scientists have banded together across international borders to condemn the nationalist-tinged conspiracy theories. And yet, they are divided on what was once widely thought the most likely culprit: a so-called wet market in Wuhan, where wild animals are kept in cages and sold as pets or food. It is believed that a bat-infected animal -- perhaps a pangolin -- infected the first human.

Anderson Cooper rips Trump for hijacking coronavirus briefing

Did Trump Golf, Hold Rallies After Learning About COVID-19 Threat?

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-golf-rallies-coronavirus/

McConnell told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that the outbreak “came up while we were tied down on the impeachment trial. And I think it diverted the attention of the government, because everything every day was all about impeachment.” 

Shortly after McConnell made these remarks, a number of op-eds were published refuting this claim. Trump even responded, saying, “I don’t think I would have done any better had I not been impeached.”

U.S. President Donald Trump golfed several times and held a number of rallies after learning about the threat of the coronavirus.

 

True

A timeline of Trump promises and predictions on coronavirus -- and how they stack up against the facts

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/05/politics/timeline-trump-promises-coronavirus/index.html

 

Washington (CNN)It's been almost a month since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic. In that time, the virus has swept across the US, which has gone from having just a few outbreaks to now leading the world in infections.

 Throughout, the Trump administration has issued a series of promises, predictions and proclamations as it has tried to calm the American people and give the impression the virus is under control. But on topics ranging from testing, to treatments, to the critical supplies that health workers need, reality has continued to fall short of President Donald Trump's rhetoric.

While this is a fluid situation, with facts changing every day, here's a look back at some of the promises and predictions the President has made and how they stack up against reality as of Sunday April 5.

Watchdog report finds severe shortages and significant challenges to hospitals' coronavirus responses

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/06/politics/department-of-health-and-human-services-shortages/index.html

When asked about the report during Monday's coronavirus press briefing, President Donald Trump questioned whether politics tinged the findings of the report.

"Give me the name of the inspector general. Could politics be entered into that?" Trump said.

Trump also questioned the integrity of the leadership in HHS' Office of the Inspector General, saying, "Well where did he come from, the inspector general? What's his name?"

The report was signed by a woman -- Christi Grimm, the principal deputy inspector general for HHS. Grimm has served in the federal government for more than two decades in both Democratic and Republican administrations.

 

Trump’s Statements About the Coronavirus

https://www.factcheck.org/2020/03/trumps-statements-about-the-coronavirus/

“This is a pandemic,” President Donald Trump said at a March 17 press conference. “I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic.”

While it’s not possible to know what Trump “felt,” there’s no doubt that Trump had minimized the threat of the new coronavirus for weeks in statement after statement.

 

Trump angrily lashes out when confronted with critiques of coronavirus response

https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/06/politics/donald-trump-coronavirus-angry-defensive/index.html

Trump was short-tempered and rude during much of his daily briefing on Monday as he refused to even listen to questions about shortcomings in the federal government effort. On Sunday, Trump muzzled the country's top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci before he could contradict his own gushing assessment of an unproven Covid-19 therapy. On Monday, the President also blasted a report by an experienced Health and Human Services Department watchdog official that found critical supply shortages at hospitals all over the country, claiming it was politically motivated.

Fox News Is Finally Being Sued For Constantly Lying To Their Viewers

PM: Israel in lockdown for Passover holy days, confined to homes on Seder night

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/Hyd3ogtwU

The prime minister said the nationwide lockdown would last from 4 pm Tuesday until 7 am Friday. The curfew will last from 6 pm Wednesday until 7 am Thursday,m during which time people would be confined to their homes.

Don't scapegoat the haredim for the coronavirus crisis

https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Dont-scapegoat-the-haredim-for-the-coronavirus-crisis-623813

Pictures of haredim holding large weddings after the government prohibited gathering of more than 10 people are maddening, But so, too, were photos of crowded Tel Aviv beaches.

 

Thousands of NY COVID patients are being treated with anti-malarial drug

https://nypost.com/2020/04/05/ny-coronavirus-patients-being-treated-with-anti-malarial-drug/

I n terms of the NYU clinical trial regarding prevention, researchers are enrolling 2,000 adult volunteers at six sites.

They are recruiting people who lack any COVID-19 symptoms but have been in close contact with others who have a confirmed or pending diagnosis.

On a random basis, the trial participants will receive either hydroxychloroquine or a placebo pill — vitamin C — every day for two weeks.

Trump grilled over continued promotion of hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus – video

https://www.theguardian.com/global/video/2020/apr/06/trump-grilled-over-continued-promotion-of-hydroxychloroquine-to-treat-coronavirus-video

 US president Donald Trump has again urged Americans to try the drug hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus. Though the drug has not undergone tests to prove its effectiveness in treating the virus, Trump has continued to advocate for it, telling reporters: ‘What do you have to lose?’ Dr Anthony Fauci, the top doctor on infectious diseases in the US and a key member of the White House task force, told CBS Face the Nation program there was nothing to suggest the medicine had any benefit against coronavirus. ‘The data are really just at best suggestive. There have been cases that show there may be an effect and there are others to show there’s no effect’. When asked at the daily press briefing, Trump refused to allow Dr Fauci to answer questions about the drug’s effectiveness

Berman to Navarro: Why are you qualified to weigh in on coronavirus treatments?