Staring down defeat, Trump attempts a coronavirus reset

A senior administration official said Trump’s relatively disciplined performance was likely to neutralize objections that some aides had raised in recent days over allowing him to participate in televised coronavirus updates. White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, along with senior adviser Jared Kushner and top officials on the president’s reelection campaign, had previously urged him to tether his reelection message to the economy and other issues instead of constantly dwelling on the deadly virus.

Instead, after weeks of pressuring schools to commit to reopening and touting his plan to reboot the U.S. economy, Trump vowed on Tuesday to pursue a “very powerful strategy” to contain the virus and ensure rapid distribution of the first available vaccine. Despite some Trumpian flourishes — he repeatedly referred to it as the “China virus” and claimed other countries are begging the U.S. for assistance — the president managed to stick to the subject matter at hand, warning that the spike in cases “will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better,” and encouraging young Americans to avoid bars and wear protective masks when necessary…

Rather than limiting his engagement on coronavirus to boost the time he spends on more politically expedient topics, Trump and his aides are now expected to refocus his attention to the global pandemic and the next economic relief package currently underway on Capitol Hill.