US coronavirus news: Trump says economy 'may be' heading for recession as White House issues new Covid-19 guidelines
Follow the latest updates
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump said the coronavirus outbreak could trigger a recession on Monday, as states across the country prepared to enter into lockdown with shops and venues closing nationwide.
The president said the US "may" see a recession as a result of the outbreak, but added that "the market will take care of itself" during a press conference at the White House.
The Dow Jones plummeted 3,000 points on Monday, reflecting the market's worst one-day point drop in history. Monday's drop came just one day after the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates to near-zero, a dramatic move that appeared to do little to restore confidence in the market, while cities and states across the US announced sweeping closures to avoid spreading the virus.
Meanwhile, San Francisco's mayor ordered the city's residents to "shelter at home" for three weeks in one of the most stringent responses yet to the coronavirus by a major US city.
The death toll rose to at least 69 and the number of cases in the US rose to more than 3,500, with experts suggesting those numbers are actually far higher due to the lack of nationwide testing.
The White House has meanwhile been forced to deny rumours of a national quarantine and nightly curfews, as reports indicated the US Health and Human Services Department suffered an attempted cyber attack amid its response to the pandemic.
Please allow a moment for our liveblog to load
Trump considering pardoning disgraced ex-aide Michael Flynn
In rare non-corona news, Trump revealed on Twitter yesterday he is considering a "full pardon" for Michael Flynn, his first national security adviser.
Flynn admitted making false statements to the FBI about his dealings with the Russian ambassador to US before Trump's inauguration, but he sought to withdraw the guilty plea in January, arguing that prosecutors violated his rights and duped him into a plea agreement.
Here's more from Oliver O'Connell.
Conservatives spark backlash after socialising against official health advice
Republicans like Oklahoma governor Kevin Stitt and Texas senator John Cornyn have both been provoking anger online after ignoring their own advice on self-isolating, taking the Devin Nunes route in dining out and putting their fellow citizens at risk of picking up Covid-19.
Andrew Naughtie has the details.
Woman with Covid-19 forced to fly to China for help after being refused test three times in US
A Chinese citizen in the US who fell ill with coronavirus was forced to fly to China to be tested after she was denied testing three times at her local hospital, Chinese media has reported.
The woman, who has been identified only by her surname Li, became ill this month with symptoms which were consistent with Covid-19 while living in Massachusetts, according to Chinese officials.
When she was denied testing three times at a local hospital, she flew to China, where she tested positive upon arrival, they said.
Conrad Duncan has this report.
States announce new lockdown measures as Trump
Here's the latest vague but upbeat pronouncement from a smartphone behind the Resolute Desk:
Meanwhile, six more state governors have announced lockdown measures as they seek to rein in the spread of the virus:
- Indiana closing state museum, bars and restaurants from today
- Kentucky closing bars and restaurants from today
- Michigan closing bars and restaurants from today
- New Jersey introducing 8pm curfew from today
- Rhode Island banning gatherings of more than 25 people from today
- Tennessee closing all schools by Friday
As for "unity", it feels like only yesterday the president was contradicting his own health experts... Oh wait, it was!
‘A complete mess’
Louis Chilton has this on late night host John Oliver's emotional verdict on Trump's response to the outbreak - filmed away from his usual CBS studio with a skeleton crew after the building was shuttered.
Trump “did not push to do aggressive additional testing… partly because more testing might have led to more cases being discovered of coronavirus outbreak, and the president had made clear - the lower the numbers on coronavirus, the better for the president, the better for his potential re-election this fall,” Oliver said.
“That is not only catastrophic… it’s also deeply frustrating, especially when you see how quickly other countries, including South Korea, ramped up their testing capabilities.
“Nothing is fine here. The president’s response has sadly been characterised by disorganisation and lies.”
'This is a national problem and we need federal leadership'
New York governor Andrew Cuomo has not been mincing his words either, joining the likes of his Illinois counterpart JB Pritzker in demanding top-down leadership from the Oval Office.
What else is on TV this morning?
Well, CBS has this chirpy feature on "humanity alive and well" looking at community action, outreach and generosity as the epidemic threatens society's most vulnerable.
Meanwhile, South Koreans are correcting US surgeon general Dr Jerome Adams after he suggested they were an "authoritarian" nation on Fox and Friends, hence their impressive effort to turnaround the crisis so quickly.
Alex Woodward has the latest on the situation in Cuomo's New York as well on developments in New Jersey and Connecticut.
Mitt Romney suggests giving Americans $1,000 a month to meet household expenses during crisis
The Utah senator - still a pariah within the Republican after having the audacity to vote with his conscience in favour of Trump's impeachment in February - has gone full Andrew Yang and is advocating bailing out American citizens by giving them a universal basic income for the duration of the coronavirus epidemic.
If only the president shared his concerns for people over profit...
Today show staffer tests positive for Covid-19
Host Savannah Guthrie shared the update with viewers on Monday morning.
“Personal note, for this show: last night we learned that a colleague of ours on the third hour of Today has tested positive for Covid-19, the novel coronavirus,” Guthrie told viewers during a segment with Hoda Kotb.
She said that Craig Melvin and Al Roker, who both work on the third hour, had taken the morning off “out of an abundance of caution”, “so we can trace their contacts, see what’s going on with them”.
“We promise to keep you posted. Both are fine right now. They feel good. But caution is the order of the day,” Guthrie added.
Clemence Michallon has this.
NFL Draft to go ahead but fan events cancelled entirely due to coronavirus crisis
The NFL Draft will go ahead in Las Vegas next month but with all public events cancelled due to the coronavirus crisis.
In an effort to tackle the outbreak of Covid-19, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed that the Draft will still take place across 23-25 April but without any fans in attendance, while the wider events surrounding the popular event have been called off completely.
But officials did confirm that the Draft will be televised to ensure that NFL fans can watch the signing process as the best young talent entering the game is snapped up in the annual curtain-raiser.
Jack de Menezes has this one.
Larry Kudlow insists coronavirus will be over in 'a matter of months' after G7 call
Trump economic adviser Larry Kudlow has been talking to reporters just now after the administration took part in a call with G7 leaders on how to stop the outbreak and struck some very Trumpian notes.
The economy is strong, the call was "fantastic" (but not "perfect"?) and the crisis will all go away in "a matter of months".
Maine GOP senator Susan Collins has meanwhile been joining in the attack on the administration's hapless response, on which this gentleman below makes the obvious point.
Another Republican, Florida senator Marco Rubio, is meanwhile being ridiculed for attempting to soothe public fears about "marshall law" becoming necessary.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments