A day after bluntly telling the nation's Governors that he had the 'ultimate authority' to force states to relax restrictions related to the Coronavirus outbreak, President Donald Trump on Tuesday stepped back and gave deference to the states, saying Governors would make the choices on when and how a state tries to move forward.
"I'm not going to put any pressure on any Governor to open," the President told reporters in the White House Rose Garden.
"I'm not going to say to Governor Cuomo, you've got to open in seven days," Mr. Trump added.
It was a marked change of tone for the President, who on Monday had said, "the President of the United States calls the shots."
The President also announced on Tuesday that he is suspending American payments to the World Health Organization, blaming the WHO for not doing enough to alert the world to the threat of the Coronavirus.
"The WHO failed in its basic duty," President Trump said. "The outbreak could have been contained at its source, with very little death."
As Mr. Trump spoke at the White House, the U.S. was closing in on 26,000 reported deaths due to the Coronavirus, not even seven weeks since the first one in Washington State.
In his remarks on Tuesday, the President made clear that he was ready to let the least impacted states re-open for business earlier than the end of April, when his social distancing measures run out.
"There are over 20 (states) that are in extremely good shape," Mr. Trump said, later saying the number was 29 states which could get an early green light to move forward.
The President indicated he would speak to the Governors on Thursday to set out his plans.
But the President also made clear that he was ready to take on the Governors if needed.
"If they don't do a good job, we're going to come down hard on them, we'll have no other choice," Mr. Trump said.
About the Author
