President Trump has tapped a bipartisan group of senators to advise him on reopening the economy, and they're giving him some conflicting suggestions.
On Thursday, Trump called a variety of senators and told them "a self-administered saliva test" for COVID-19 "and diagnostics to detect antibodies were closer to being widely available," Bloomberg reports. He then asked senators for their thoughts on the current coronavirus situation, with Republican senators pushing for a return to normalcy and Democrats telling Trump to maintain shutdowns and distancing efforts.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) told Trump some state economies could collapse if shutdowns continue; he also acknowledged that reopening those economies would lead the virus to "spread faster" in a Wednesday Fox News appearance. Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) said some rural areas in his state had low COVID-19 infection rates and no deaths, and suggested at least they be allowed to resume economic activities. Trump hinted that might be possible, saying some governors could resume economic activities such as outdoor construction once federal guidelines expire at the end of the month, Bloomberg reports.
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Meanwhile, Democratic senators, namely Tom Carper (Del.), told Trump to follow the science and "refrain from relaxing rules until the crisis abates," Bloomberg reports. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) went so far as to call for a "Manhattan Project"-style effort to produce and distribute coronavirus tests. He also called on Trump to create an economic "safety net" for the unemployed and small businesses, as well as ensure health care coverage for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipients, Bloomberg's Jennifer Jacobs wrote.
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