Coronavirus government response updates: Trump tweets states 'should open up ASAP' as death toll nears 100,000
After defending spending part of his Memorial Day weekend golfing as "exercise" and retweeting a snide remark at his political opponent for wearing a mask, President Donald Trump sent a clear message Tuesday that he wants states to open up "ASAP."
It came as the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus neared 100,000 lives, after the World Health Organization warned of a "second peak" in the global pandemic and following viral videos on U.S. soil of some Americans ignoring social distancing guidelines over the weekend.
Asked at an afternoon Rose Garden news conference what message he had for those flouting restrictions, Trump replied, "Be safe," saying nothing more, declining to criticize them.
Trump also continued to threaten to Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, a Democrat, that if he doesn't guarantee "within a week" that restrictions in the state will be lifted by August, the Republican National Committee might move its 2020 convention to another state.
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Here are Tuesday's most significant developments in Washington:
