Trump touted reopening. Privately, his team sounded alarms.

Tapes of conference calls of FEMA and HHS officials across the country reveal widespread worries about new waves of Covid-19 infections.

President Donald Trump boasted on May 1 that his success in responding to the coronavirus pandemic has made ventilator, test kit and mask shortages a thing of the past, and that much of the country is ready to quickly send peopleback to work.

“We’ve ensured a ventilator for every patient who needs one,” he said. “The testing and the masks and all of the things, we’ve solved every problem. We solved it quickly.”

But that same day, his own health and emergency management officials were privately warning that states were still experiencing shortages of masks, gowns and other medical gear, according to a recording of an interagency meeting between FEMA and HHS officials across the country, conducted by conference call, which was obtained by POLITICO. Continue reading.

White House plans to scale back coronavirus task force

The Hill logoThe White House is in the early stages of winding down its coronavirus task force, Vice President Pence’s office confirmed Tuesday.

The surprise decision comes as most states are preparing to loosen restrictions meant to slow the spread of the virus, while a number of areas continue to see increases in new COVID-19 cases and deaths.

Pence’s office told reporters at a limited briefing that his plan is to scale back the task force’s role by Memorial Day. Pence has been leading the task force since late February. Continue reading.

Trump’s new vaccine timeline met with deep skepticism

The Hill logoPublic health experts are pushing back on President Trump‘s claim that a COVID-19 vaccine will be available by the end of the year.

The Trump administration is racing to get a vaccine to the market quickly with “Operation Warp Speed” and has started to whittle down candidates.

The project’s goal is to have 300 million vaccine doses available by January, an accelerated version of the administration’s previous projections of needing 12-18 months to get a vaccine ready for the public. Continue reading.

Americans widely oppose reopening most businesses, despite easing of restrictions in some states, Post-U. Md. poll finds

Washington Post logoAmericans clearly oppose the reopening of restaurants, retail stores and other businesses, even as governors begin to lift restrictions that have kept the economy locked down in an effort to combat the coronavirus pandemic, according to a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll.

The opposition expressed by sizable majorities of Americans reflects other cautions and concerns revealed in the survey, including continuing fears among most people that they could become infected by the coronavirus, as well as a belief that the worst of the medical crisis is not yet over.

About half of states have eased restrictions on businesses, but Americans’ unease about patronizing them represents a major hurdle to restarting the economy. Many Americans have been making trips to grocery stores and 56 percent say they are comfortable doing so. But 67 percent say they would be uncomfortable shopping at a retail clothing store, and 78 percent would be uncomfortable eating at a sit-down restaurant. People in states with looser restrictions report similar levels of discomfort as those in states with stricter rules. Continue reading.

260,000 Words, Full of Self-Praise, From Trump on the Virus

New York Times logoAt his White House news briefing on the coronavirus on March 19, President Trump offered high praise for the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Stephen Hahn. “He’s worked, like, probably as hard or harder than anybody,” Mr. Trump said. Then he corrected himself: “Other than maybe Mike Pence — or me.”

On March 27, Mr. Trump boasted about marshaling federal resources to fight the virus, ignoring his early failures and smearing previous administrations. “Nobody has done anything like we’ve been able to do,” he claimed. “And everything I took over was a mess. It was a broken country in so many ways. In so many ways.”

And on April 13, Mr. Trump insisted that governors were so satisfied with his performance they hadn’t asked for anything on a recent conference call. “There wasn’t even a statement of like, ‘We think you should do this or that,’” he said. “I heard it was, like, just a perfect phone call.” Continue reading.

Fed Chair to Congress: Do Whatever It Takes to Keep the Economy From Collapse

New York Times logoIt’s a reversal of the usual relationship between elected officials and independent central bankers.

There were many thousands of viewers watching Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s news conference on Wednesday afternoon, between various online feeds and financial news networks. But his most important message was directed at just 536 people.

That would be the 435 members of the House of Representatives, the 100 members of the United States Senate, and the president of the United States.

The Fed has taken expansive efforts to prop up lending markets in the United States, pledging to inject trillions of dollars of support into the markets, including for corporate bonds (big companies), bank lending (midsize companies), mortgage-backed securities (home buyers) and municipal bonds (states and localities). Congress has encouraged this, authorizing billions to the Treasury to be combined with Fed resources. Continue reading.

As Trump talks rebound, Fed’s Powell warns economy’s pain will last

The Fed chief’s comments suggest the U.S. economy could face a rocky path for at least the next year as it attempts to rebuild.

President Donald Trump is hoping the economy will bounce back rapidly from the coronavirus shutdown, but Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned Wednesday that it will take time for the country’s wounds to heal even after businesses begin to reopen.

After the Fed pledged to keep interest rates near zero until the economy has weathered the pandemic, Powell underscored the bleak reality, saying next week’s monthly jobs report is expected to show an unemployment rate somewhere in the double digits.

“We’re going to see economic data for the second quarter that’s worse than any data we’ve seen for the economy,” he said during a news conference. Continue reading.

As Trump talks rebound, Fed’s Powell warns economy’s pain will last

The Fed chief’s comments suggest the U.S. economy could face a rocky path for at least the next year as it attempts to rebuild.

President Donald Trump is hoping the economy will bounce back rapidly from the coronavirus shutdown, but Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned Wednesday that it will take time for the country’s wounds to heal even after businesses begin to reopen.

After the Fed pledged to keep interest rates near zero until the economy has weathered the pandemic, Powell underscored the bleak reality, saying next week’s monthly jobs report is expected to show an unemployment rate somewhere in the double digits.

“We’re going to see economic data for the second quarter that’s worse than any data we’ve seen for the economy,” he said during a news conference. Continue reading.

Trump says he plans to resume travel next week with trip to Arizona

The Hill logoPresident Trump on Wednesday said he plans to resume traveling next week with a trip to Arizona after spending the past month largely cloistered in the White House due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I think I’m going to Arizona next week, and we look forward to that,” he told reporters during a roundtable with business leaders.

“And I’m going to, I hope, Ohio very soon,” he continued. “And we’re going to start to move around, and hopefully in the not too distant future we’ll have some massive rallies and people will be sitting next to each other.” Continue reading.

Trump cuts U.S. research on bat-human virus transmission over China ties

The National Institutes of Health on Friday told EcoHealth Alliance, the study’s sponsor for the past five years, that all future funding was cut.

The Trump administration abruptly cut off funding for a project studying how coronaviruses spread from bats to people after reports linked the work to a lab in Wuhan, China, at the center of conspiracy theories about the Covid-19 pandemic’s origins.

The National Institutes of Health on Friday told EcoHealth Alliance, the study’s sponsor for the past five years, that all future funding was cut. The agency also demanded that the New York-based research nonprofit stop spending the $369,819 remaining from its 2020 grant, according to emails obtained by POLITICO.

“At this time, NIH does not believe that the current project outcomes align with the program goals and agency priorities,” Michael Lauer, the agency’s deputy director for extramural research, wrote in a letter to EcoHealth Alliance officials. Continue reading.