White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow has predicted that no second wave of coronavirus is coming in the United States — though another adviser says officials are preparing for a potential second wave.
On a Monday CNBC appearance, Kudlow downplayed concerns over rising COVID-19 cases in numerous states, including some that have reached single-day records like Arizona and Florida.
"There are some hot spots," Kudlow said. "We're on it. We know how to deal with this stuff now. ... There is no second wave coming. It's just, you know, hot spots."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Overall, Kudlow, who in early March claimed that COVID-19 was "contained" in the U.S. and said Americans "should stay at work," argued the U.S. is in a "pretty good situation."
But recently, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told CNN the Trump administration is preparing for a potential second wave in the fall and "filling the stockpile in anticipation of a possible problem," though he didn't predict that one would definitely occur.
"You prepare for what can possibly happen," Navarro said. "I'm not saying it's going to happen, but of course you prepare."
Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has stressed that the rising COVID-19 cases in some states aren't indicative of a second wave because "we still are in the first wave." As far as whether a second wave will definitely hit in the fall, Fauci recently told The Washington Post that it's "not inevitable" depending on whether the right steps are taken when "blips of infection" pop up.
"We want to get that first wave down," Fauci said. "Then we'll see if we can keep it there." Brendan Morrow
-
Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in OregonSpeed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denialSpeed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartelsspeed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feudSpeed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protestersSpeed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US
-
US government shuts down amid health care standoffSpeed Read Democrats said they won’t vote for a deal that doesn’t renew Affordable Care Act health care subsidies
-
YouTube to pay Trump $22M over Jan. 6 expulsionSpeed Read The president accused the company of censorship following the suspension of accounts post-Capitol riot
