WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump is confronting cases of the coronavirus in his own home, even as he pushes the nation to “reopen.”
That dynamic spotlights the challenge the White House faces in instilling confidence in a nation still reeling from the pandemic. Two known cases of COVID-19 among staffers in one of the most-protected complexes in the nation have sent three of the nation’s top medical experts into quarantine, and Vice President Mike Pence is in “self-isolation.”
The scare comes as the White House this week is trying to emphasize to the American people the steps being taken to assure their safety — in hopes that will coax them to resume normal activities.
On Monday, Trump and officials in his administration held a press briefing regarding the U.S.’s testing capacity. According to the CDC, the U.S. has been conducting about 2,500 people for the coronavirus per day. Health experts agree that the country needs to increase its testing capacity before it reopens — most agree that at the low end, the country should be testing about 500,000 people every day. However, there is a shortage of equipment needed to conduct the tests, particularly cotton swabs.
