The President of United States Donald Trump who for long resisted wearing face-covering in public has now changed his tone. He says he is all for masks and think a mask makes him look like Lone Ranger. Trump also claimed the government does not need to make wearing masks obligatory to restrict coronavirus spread in the US.
His comments came after a top politician from his party called on him to set an example by wearing masks.
Also read- Pooled Testing May Help in Tracing New Infections
He predicted that the virus would disappear soon. On the same day, the US confirmed its new daily record of coronavirus cases with 52000 new cases.
There are nearly 2.7 million people affected by COVID-19 is the US with more than 128000 deaths.
Donald Trump said if he were in close distance with people, he would absolutely wear a mask. Moreover, he added that people have seen him wear a mask in public.
The President repeated that he believes face masks should not be made mandatory across the US as there are many places in the US where people stay very far from each other and it won’t help in limiting coronavirus spread in the US. He further said that if people feel good about wearing face masks then they should wear it.
Donald Trump ignored wearing masks on his visit to a medical swab manufacturing plant on June 5 in Maine. The purpose of this visit was to speed up the production of testing supplies.
In May when he was visiting Ford manufacturing plant in Michigan, he was forced to wear a mask briefly and he was quick to take it off before appearing in front of reporters. According to him, he didn’t want to give pleasure to the media by seeing it.
The White House defended Donald Trump’s statement by saying that Trump is frequently tested for the virus and so are people in contact with him.
At the start of April, the US Centers for disease control and prevention (CDC) suggested people wear face coverings in public where social distancing is difficult to maintain. However, the President instantly challenged the CDC suggestion and stated flatly that he won’t follow it.
He emphasized repeatedly that wearing masks is a personal decision. He also stated last month that some people only wear masks as a political statement against him.
In a poll conducted last week, 89% of US citizens said they wore masks or face covering when they are out of their homes.
Democrats criticized Donald Trump for politicizing the need to wear masks and also downplaying the idea.
Also read- Dr.Fauci Says he Won’t be surprised if the US Surpass 100,000 Coronavirus Cases per Day
Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Tuesday that if the total daily number of cases surpass 100,000 it won’t surprise him. And he blamed the citizens of the US by saying not enough people wearing masks or following physical distancing have contributed to recent coronavirus spread in the US.
The recent surge in cases has led many states to pause their reopening. About 20 states have made it mandatory to wear face masks in public.
On 3 July Donald Trump will celebrate Independence Day at Mount Rushmore and there will be no restrictions to wear masks or follow social distancing.