Today's outrageous presser (from Daniel Dale, bless him):
Trump: "Thank you all for being here, and we continue our relentless effort to defeat the Chinese virus."
Trump: "It's too bad, because we never had an economy as good as the economy we had just a few weeks ago. But we'll be back."
"This was something that happened that was -- some people would say an Act of God. I don't view it as an act of God. I would view it as something that just surprised the whole world, and if people would've known...it could've been stopped right where it came from, China." [Again, the US intelligence community and various experts had repeatedly warned of the risk of a pandemic, and the world knew of this particular problem weeks before Trump has claimed.]
"I believe in the V curve. I believe it's gonna go, when this is defeated, this hidden scourge is defeated, I think we're gonna go up very rapidly, our economy, and get back to where it was, and beyond."
Trump boasts about how he has cut red tape to get "very important things to the market -- medical."
Trump says the FDA commissioner has been working maybe "as hard or harder than anybody in the group, other than maybe Mike Pence. Or me."
Trump touts various drugs that might possibly prove useful re the coronavirus, then says, "It's a very exciting time for medicine."
Trump on Americans staying home: "I think there's tremendous spirit in this country right now.. It's a spirit like a lot of people have not seen. People have not seen anything like it."
Pence thanks companies for selling industrial masks directly to hospitals now that they now have liability protection, and thanks construction companies, "on behalf of the president, who spent a lot of time as a builder," for donating some of their own masks.
Pence says they have "literally identified tens of thousands of ventilators" that can be "converted to treat patients." He says "we remain increasingly confident that we will have the ventilators that we need."
Asked if he can guarantee bailout money doesn't go to bonuses or stock buybacks, Trump says, "We don't want that," and conditions on the bill "would be okay with me," but says lots of people have to agree.
Asked why he's not using the Defense Production Act yet, Trump said, "The federal government's not supposed to be out there buying vast amounts of items and then shipping. You know, we're not a shipping clerk." Trump says the same goes for coronavirus testing -- "the governors are supposed to be doing it," not the federal government.
"If we find that we need something that we will do that. And you don't know what we've done. You don't know whether or not we've ordered. You don't know if we've invoked it. You don't know what's been ordered."
!!!! That's the fucking problem, you ignorant, incompetent, lying, arrogant piece of shit! Nobody knows anything!
Trump asked when Americans will get to go back to normal life: "I hope very soon, we'll see...we think we have ideas, it doesn't help to say what the ideas are. I would hope very soon."
Trump says "social distancing" is "very interesting" and has become "somewhat of a hot term."
Trump asked why the US wasn't prepared with more testing if, as he claimed, he knew long ago it would be a pandemic: "We were very prepared. The only thing we weren't prepared for was -- the media. The media has not treated it fairly." He's just saying nonsense.
Trump says Carnival cruise lines is going to be making ships available "if we should need ships, lots of rooms," and dock them in NY and San Fran and such. (As always with these Trump announcements, exercise caution until details are known.)
Trump asked to explain the gap between his rhetoric about tons of tests and equipment and people who can't tested even with symptoms/doctors saying they don't have vital equipment: "I cannot explain the gap. I'm hearing very good things on the ground...look, they had to ramp up."
As about any possible repercussions for China, Trump says he doesn't want to comment.
Other than constantly referring to the virus as the Chinese virus.
Trump asked if he's prepared for a spike in unemployment: "Worst case scenario you would have terrible job numbers. If we can get this thing wrapped up and finished earlier, things will go very nicely."
Trump, asked about any guidance for Congress re these positive tests among members, talks about reporters: "You're actually sitting too close. You should really -- we should probably get rid of another 75%, 80% of you. I'll have just two or three that I like in this room."
This is a little different than the interpretation of it I read earlier. This doesn't sound like he's wishing the virus on them. It sounds like he just doesn't want to let most of them in the press room. And I've got news for him: they probably would rather not be there themselves.
Trump: The coronavirus is "a tough one," but "people get better -- most people are getting better."
Just bounces back and forth. One day it's no big deal. One day it's serious. The next day, no big deal again.
Trump again praises Japan for building beautiful Olympics venues on budget.
Trump says "in one way, our consumer is very much helped" by low gas prices resulting from the oil price crash. He adds, "It's very devastating to Russia."
Trump on why he got a coronavirus test: "I got a test because you people were driving everybody crazy."
Trump says the media never calls him for comment, then speculates that the Washington Post is being negative to him lately because maybe they aren't returning the Post's calls.
Jesus wept.
UPDATE:
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