Trump Says Covid-19 Will ’Go Away Without Vaccine’, Expects US Death Toll to Top 95k

By Staff, Agencies

US President Donald Trump said the novel coronavirus will “go away without a vaccine” and is expecting 95,000 or more deaths in the United States.

Trump’s comments, at an event with Republican lawmakers, capped a horror week in the US, in which it was revealed unemployment had risen to 14.7%, up from 3.5% in February, with 20 million people losing their jobs in April.

Meanwhile, vice president Mike Pence’s press secretary Katie Miller had tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the danger of the virus to the White House inner circle. Katie Miller is married to the White House immigration adviser and speech writer Stephen Miller. On Thursday one of Trump’s personal valets tested positive to the virus.

Trump again appeared to reset expectations for the final US death toll, saying he expected 95,000 or more to die. The current toll stands at just over 77,000, with nearly 1.3 million infections, including nearly 29,000 new infections added to the count on Friday.

The US state department on Friday accused China and Russia of stepping up cooperation to spread false narratives over the coronavirus pandemic, saying Beijing was increasingly adopting techniques honed by Moscow.

“Even before the Covid-19 crisis we assessed a certain level of coordination between Russia and the PRC in the realm of propaganda,” said Lea Gabrielle, coordinator of the state department’s global engagement center which tracks foreign propaganda.

“But with this pandemic the cooperation has accelerated rapidly,” she told reporters, in a continuing war of words between Washington and Beijing.