Donald Trump has downplayed the possibility of a widespread outbreak of the coronavirus inside the United States, calling the risk "low" a day and appearing to disagree with his top health officials who have said it is a matter of when, not if, the country sees serious illnesses.
"No, I dont think it's inevitable. It probably will, It possibly will," he said. "This will end. ... Nothing's inevitable."
He said he was putting vice president Mike Pence in charge of overseeing efforts to protect Americans from the deadly virus, which has killed thousands of people – particularly in China – although there have been no fatalities in the US.
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White House appoints 23-year-old student to top role
Donald Trump’s White House is facing criticism for its “insane and depressing” decision to hire 23-year-old college James Bacon for a post in its powerful Presidential Personnel Office under new director John McEntee.
Bacon is a senior at George Washington University where he is a bachelor’s degree and previously spent time as a policy aide at Elaine Chou's Department of Transportation and Ben Carson's Department of Housing and Urban Development, according to Politico.
Bacon is replacing 70-year-old Katja Bullock and will be "overseeing paperwork and will assist on vetting", says Politico.
US politics expert Brian Klaas was among the first to mock the appointment by McEntee - prioritising loyalty ahead of experience - who is himself just 29 and was the president's former body man until he was sacked by then-chief of staff John Kelly in 2018 when gambling allegations against him prompted security concerns.
McEntee is replacing Sean Doocey, who was recently moved to the State Department.
The whole business reminds me of this glorious scene in Armando Ianucci's satire In The Loop (2009) in which Peter Capaldi's fearsome Downing Street spin doctor Malcolm Tucker visits 1600 Pennsylvannia Avenue and is appalled by the youth and inexperience he encouters.
Here's Rory Sullivan's report.
Donald Trump’s White House is facing criticism for its “insane and depressing” decision to hire 23-year-old college James Bacon for a post in its powerful Presidential Personnel Office under new director John McEntee.
Bacon is a senior at George Washington University where he is a bachelor’s degree and previously spent time as a policy aide at Elaine Chou's Department of Transportation and Ben Carson's Department of Housing and Urban Development, according to Politico.
Bacon is replacing 70-year-old Katja Bullock and will be "overseeing paperwork and will assist on vetting", says Politico.
US politics expert Brian Klaas was among the first to mock the appointment by McEntee - prioritising loyalty ahead of experience - who is himself just 29 and was the president's former body man until he was sacked by then-chief of staff John Kelly in 2018 when gambling allegations against him prompted security concerns.
McEntee is replacing Sean Doocey, who was recently moved to the State Department.
The whole business reminds me of this glorious scene in Armando Ianucci's satire In The Loop (2009) in which Peter Capaldi's fearsome Downing Street spin doctor Malcolm Tucker visits 1600 Pennsylvannia Avenue and is appalled by the youth and inexperience he encouters.
Here's Rory Sullivan's report.
President leaves India after being shielded from violent anti-Muslim riots
Trump has just returned from his two-day visit to India where he set in place a lucrative $3bn (£2.3bn) arms deal with Narendra Modi and toured the country’s beauty spots while being shielded from the outbreak of anti-Muslim riots, which left at least 20 people dead in New Dehli.
The White House says it has agreed to "promptly" conclude its ongoing talks with the Modi administration, which it hopes will lead to the first phase of a bilateral US-India trade deal.
Ahead of Trump's trip, negotiators from the two sides wrangled for months to narrow differences on farm goods, medical devices, digital trade and new tariffs.
"If the deal happens with India it will be at the end of this year and if it doesn't happen then we will do something else," he said on Tuesday. The president added that the US expects to be treated fairly and given reciprocal access to India's market after criticising the country's high tariffs.
All of which will allow Trump to pronounce the visit a success despite its coinciding with brutal clashes in the capital between Hindu and Muslim groups over a new citizenship law.
"There are 20 people dead and 189 injured," a senior doctor from the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital told Reuters on Wednesday. Separately, an official at the Al-Hind Hospital in New Delhi said the facility had treated more than 200 injured people since Monday, many with severe injuries.
Trump has just returned from his two-day visit to India where he set in place a lucrative $3bn (£2.3bn) arms deal with Narendra Modi and toured the country’s beauty spots while being shielded from the outbreak of anti-Muslim riots, which left at least 20 people dead in New Dehli.
The White House says it has agreed to "promptly" conclude its ongoing talks with the Modi administration, which it hopes will lead to the first phase of a bilateral US-India trade deal.
Ahead of Trump's trip, negotiators from the two sides wrangled for months to narrow differences on farm goods, medical devices, digital trade and new tariffs.
"If the deal happens with India it will be at the end of this year and if it doesn't happen then we will do something else," he said on Tuesday. The president added that the US expects to be treated fairly and given reciprocal access to India's market after criticising the country's high tariffs.
All of which will allow Trump to pronounce the visit a success despite its coinciding with brutal clashes in the capital between Hindu and Muslim groups over a new citizenship law.
"There are 20 people dead and 189 injured," a senior doctor from the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital told Reuters on Wednesday. Separately, an official at the Al-Hind Hospital in New Delhi said the facility had treated more than 200 injured people since Monday, many with severe injuries.
After some of the worst violence in the capital in decades, police used tear gas, pellets and smoke grenades, but struggled to disperse stone-throwing mobs. On Wednesday, parts of the riot-hit areas were deserted and a witness saw paramilitary and police forces deployed in much greater numbers.
Witnesses told Reuters they saw mobs wielding sticks, pipes and stones walking down streets in parts of northeast Delhi on Tuesday, amid incidents of arson, looting and stone-pelting. Thick clouds of black smoke billowed from a tyre market that was set ablaze, as fire trucks rushed to control the flames. Shots could be heard in the area and many of the wounded had suffered gunshot injuries, hospital officials said.
"The situation is relatively better than yesterday in the violence hit areas," Atul Garg, the director of the Delhi fire department said on Wednesday, adding the fire department had stationed more vehicles and senior officials in the area. "There are no rioters on the streets and our vehicles have been able to reach the area," he said. At least two mosques in northeast Delhi were set on fire in the rioting.
On Wednesday, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) said in a tweet that it was alarmed by the violence and it urged the Indian government "to rein in mobs and protect religious minorities and others who have been targeted."
The sectarian violence erupted between thousands demonstrating for and against the new citizenship law introduced by Modi's Hindu nationalist government.
India's capital has been the epicentre of unrest against the Citizenship Amendment Act, which makes it easier for non-Muslims from some neighbouring Muslim-dominated countries to gain Indian citizenship.
Critics say the law is biased against Muslims and undermines India's secular constitution. Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party has denied it has any bias against India's more than 180m Muslims.
India's home minister Amit Shah, who is directly responsible for law and order in the national capital area, held multiple high-level meetings on Tuesday to assess the situation and urged politicians to avoid provocative speeches that could fan tensions. The Home Ministry also appointed a special commissioner of the Delhi Police to help bring the situation under control.
'Great scientist' Trump ridiculed by rivals over coronoavirus
On the debate stage in South Carolina on Tuesday night, Trump came under fire for his handling of the coronavirus from his Democratic challengers.
Bernie and Amy Klobuchar got in the most effective digs at his laissez faire approach to the crisis, with the former especially cutting:
"In the White House today, we have a self-described great genius - self-described - and this great genius has told us that this coronavirus is going to end in two months.
"April is the magical date that this great scientist we have in the White House has determined - I wish I was kidding. That is what he said."
The president responded angrily on Twitter, as you might have expected.
On the debate stage in South Carolina on Tuesday night, Trump came under fire for his handling of the coronavirus from his Democratic challengers.
Bernie and Amy Klobuchar got in the most effective digs at his laissez faire approach to the crisis, with the former especially cutting:
"In the White House today, we have a self-described great genius - self-described - and this great genius has told us that this coronavirus is going to end in two months.
"April is the magical date that this great scientist we have in the White House has determined - I wish I was kidding. That is what he said."
The president responded angrily on Twitter, as you might have expected.
That wasn't enough to stop him becoming a meme though.
Here's Phil Thomas's report on the American response to the situation as San Francisco declares a state of emergency.
Trump hails 'very successful' trip on return to White House - again ignoring deadly riots and downplaying virus
Here's the president sounding glad to be home and again whitewashing the fatal clashes in New Dehli and glossing over the coronavirus threat.
Here's the president sounding glad to be home and again whitewashing the fatal clashes in New Dehli and glossing over the coronavirus threat.
While his administration insists the outbreak is under control (adviser Larry Kudlow: "We have contained this... it's pretty close to airtight"), the Centres for Disease Conrtol and Prevention are warning Americans to prepare for widespread disruption to their daily routines.
Trump's opposition are not the only ones going after him about the epidemic: Republican Mitt Romney - still a pariah within the GOP for voting for breaking ranks to vote for Trump's impeachment - has also been highly critical.
Here's Oliver O'Connell on the latest rebellion of "Pierre Delecto".
Chaotic showdown sees Sanders and Bloomberg face attacks from all sides as Biden reclaims his time
Here's Chris Riotta with an overview of last night's debate, which saw the candidates largely focus their fire on front-runner Bernie Sanders and wealthy newcomer Michael Bloomberg.
Elizabeth Warren again put Bloomberg to the sword over his treatment of women, accusing him of telling a female employee to "kill it" when she revealed she had become pregnant in 1995 - a remark the billionnaire flatly denied ever saying.
Here's Chris Riotta with an overview of last night's debate, which saw the candidates largely focus their fire on front-runner Bernie Sanders and wealthy newcomer Michael Bloomberg.
Elizabeth Warren again put Bloomberg to the sword over his treatment of women, accusing him of telling a female employee to "kill it" when she revealed she had become pregnant in 1995 - a remark the billionnaire flatly denied ever saying.
Bernie Sanders calls Benjamin Netanyahu 'reactionary racist'
In one of the standout moments of the debate, the Vermont senator spoke about his pride in being Jewish before laying into Israeli prime minister and Trump ally Benjamin Netanyahu in uncompromising fashion.
"You cannot ignore the suffering of the Palestinian people," he told his audience in Charleston.
Rory Sullivan has this one.
In one of the standout moments of the debate, the Vermont senator spoke about his pride in being Jewish before laying into Israeli prime minister and Trump ally Benjamin Netanyahu in uncompromising fashion.
"You cannot ignore the suffering of the Palestinian people," he told his audience in Charleston.
Rory Sullivan has this one.
Joe Biden campaign admits he did not get arrested for trying to visit Nelson Mandela in prison during apartheid
The former vice-president cut a belligerant and combative figure last night, bickering with the CBS moderators for interrupting his answers and looking straight down the camera to threaten the National Rifle Association.
But, in a further embarrassment for the gaffe-prone veep, his team have been forced to correct an assertion he has repeatedly made on the campaign trail recently about his adventures in South Africa in the 1980s.
Here's Conrad Duncan to explain.
The former vice-president cut a belligerant and combative figure last night, bickering with the CBS moderators for interrupting his answers and looking straight down the camera to threaten the National Rifle Association.
But, in a further embarrassment for the gaffe-prone veep, his team have been forced to correct an assertion he has repeatedly made on the campaign trail recently about his adventures in South Africa in the 1980s.
Here's Conrad Duncan to explain.
Who won and lost the latest 2020 showdown?
After a bad-tempered and inconclusive evening, the right will certainly tell you that the president was the real victor.
"If we spend the next four months tearing our party apart, we're going to watch Donald Trump spend the next four years tearing our country apart," said Amy Klobuchar, a remark with much more truth to it than most political soundbites.
Here's Phil Thomas to offer his view.
After a bad-tempered and inconclusive evening, the right will certainly tell you that the president was the real victor.
"If we spend the next four months tearing our party apart, we're going to watch Donald Trump spend the next four years tearing our country apart," said Amy Klobuchar, a remark with much more truth to it than most political soundbites.
Here's Phil Thomas to offer his view.
Amy Klobuchar: 'This president just likes to do tweets at 4am in his bathrobe’
Another good line from the Minnesota senator last night and one entirely borne out by his busy tweeting schedule aboard Air Force One overnight, with Trump firing out retweetes from The Daily Caller, Lou Dobbs, Mark Levin and his own national press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, most of which either talking down the coronavirus or the threat posed by Bernie at the polls.
He also took credit for the ratings success of Fox News...
...and posted this odd throwback from January 2017, in which a supporter thanked him for giving up his "wonderful life" to serve the country.
He's just been to the Taj Mahal for free!!!
Another good line from the Minnesota senator last night and one entirely borne out by his busy tweeting schedule aboard Air Force One overnight, with Trump firing out retweetes from The Daily Caller, Lou Dobbs, Mark Levin and his own national press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, most of which either talking down the coronavirus or the threat posed by Bernie at the polls.
He also took credit for the ratings success of Fox News...
...and posted this odd throwback from January 2017, in which a supporter thanked him for giving up his "wonderful life" to serve the country.
He's just been to the Taj Mahal for free!!!
Roger Stone judge condemns ‘harassment’ of jurors as Trump launches fresh attack on Twitter
Trump tweeted out new allegations of bias against the judge and jury in the Roger Stone trial yesterday - just as disctrict court justice Amy Berman Jackson complained that her jurors were being intimidated and harassed.
Trump tweeted out new allegations of bias against the judge and jury in the Roger Stone trial yesterday - just as disctrict court justice Amy Berman Jackson complained that her jurors were being intimidated and harassed.
Referring to accusations against her forewoman that have gained currency in conservative and pro-Trump circles, Judge Jackson said she had seen no evidence of anything untoward.
She added that, in the current climate, making jurors’ identities public would put them at “serious risk of harm”, citing “a highly polarised political climate in which the president himself has shone a spotlight on the jury”.
With classic Trump timing, he duly tweeted his grievances against the court:
Here's Andrew Naughtie with the latest.
'Trump is secretly terrified of the coronavirus - because of what it's doing to his re-election prospects'
For Indy Voices, Tim Mullaney has this insight into the president's private concerns about the global spread of the pandemic and its knock-on consequences.
For Indy Voices, Tim Mullaney has this insight into the president's private concerns about the global spread of the pandemic and its knock-on consequences.
President announces 'Caronavirus' press conference and bashes Dem debate
In the last hour, Trump has announced he'll be holding a press conference on the "Caronavirus" this evening (after Klobuchar called him out for not addressing the nation on the crisis last night) and served up the inevitable attacks on the 2020 candidates and the media.
Elizabeth Warren was "mean and undisciplined", he said, before mocking "Crazy Bernie" and "Mini Mike" himself.
He also called her a "chocker", presumably meaning "choker". Wow, his English is worse than his Hindi.
He's also been quoting Candace Owens on Fox on the supposed surge in support for him from African-Americans without offering any evidence and trailing his next rally in South Carolina on Friday.
Here's John T Bennett on this latest serving of madness from the Resolute Desk.
In the last hour, Trump has announced he'll be holding a press conference on the "Caronavirus" this evening (after Klobuchar called him out for not addressing the nation on the crisis last night) and served up the inevitable attacks on the 2020 candidates and the media.
Elizabeth Warren was "mean and undisciplined", he said, before mocking "Crazy Bernie" and "Mini Mike" himself.
He also called her a "chocker", presumably meaning "choker". Wow, his English is worse than his Hindi.
He's also been quoting Candace Owens on Fox on the supposed surge in support for him from African-Americans without offering any evidence and trailing his next rally in South Carolina on Friday.
Here's John T Bennett on this latest serving of madness from the Resolute Desk.
Trevor Noah mocks Trump for 'butchering' Hindi language during India visit
The Daily Show's host was left helpless with laughter at the president's blundering attempts to pronounce Hindi names in his address in Ahmedabad on Monday.
Here's Oliver O'Connell on a joyous segment.
The Daily Show's host was left helpless with laughter at the president's blundering attempts to pronounce Hindi names in his address in Ahmedabad on Monday.
Here's Oliver O'Connell on a joyous segment.
Trump called Obama 'a psycho' for not banning flights over Ebola virus
As Trump continues to insist the coronavirus threat is overstated, it's worth revisiting the pressure he himself put on Barack Obama over the Ebola outbreak in 2014.
There was also this tweet, in which he argued that the Liberian immigrant who first caught the disease of the US should be prosecuted, posting that message four days before Thomas Eric Duncan passed away in Dallas, Texas, aged just 42.
Chris Riotta looks back on the president's heckling from the sidelines six years ago.
As Trump continues to insist the coronavirus threat is overstated, it's worth revisiting the pressure he himself put on Barack Obama over the Ebola outbreak in 2014.
There was also this tweet, in which he argued that the Liberian immigrant who first caught the disease of the US should be prosecuted, posting that message four days before Thomas Eric Duncan passed away in Dallas, Texas, aged just 42.
Chris Riotta looks back on the president's heckling from the sidelines six years ago.
Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren pick up key endorsements
South Carolina congressman Jim Clyburn has just endorsed the former vice-president ahead of his state's crucial primary, which is make-or-break for Diamond Joe.
Meanwhile, The Boston Globe has backed Massachusetts senator Warren despite admitting that she is a "divisive figure".
South Carolina congressman Jim Clyburn has just endorsed the former vice-president ahead of his state's crucial primary, which is make-or-break for Diamond Joe.
Meanwhile, The Boston Globe has backed Massachusetts senator Warren despite admitting that she is a "divisive figure".
New poll shows Bernie winning approval as Mayor Pete forced to cancel Florida fundraisers
Also in the race for the Democratic presidential race, Bernie's curmudgeonly performance on the stage in Charleston last night impressed the viewing public...
Also in the race for the Democratic presidential race, Bernie's curmudgeonly performance on the stage in Charleston last night impressed the viewing public...
...while challenger Pete Buttigieg has been forced to cancel a string of Florida fundraising events ahead of Super Tuesday because he's ill. Let's hope it's not you-know-what.
Chuck Schumer set to propose $8.5bn coronavirus emergency relief package
The Senate minority leader is reportedly seeking to dwarf the White House's spending proposal by asking Congress to reapportion $8.5bn (£6.6bn) to take on the pandemic.
That's $6bn (£4.6bn) more than the $2.5bn (£1.9bn) asked for by the Trump administration.
Yesterday, Schumer accused the president of being "asleep at the wheel" on the international crisis and he has continued to bash the government response with some gusto.
The Senate minority leader is reportedly seeking to dwarf the White House's spending proposal by asking Congress to reapportion $8.5bn (£6.6bn) to take on the pandemic.
That's $6bn (£4.6bn) more than the $2.5bn (£1.9bn) asked for by the Trump administration.
Yesterday, Schumer accused the president of being "asleep at the wheel" on the international crisis and he has continued to bash the government response with some gusto.
You can, incidentally, follow our dedicated liveblog on the coronavirus with Chiara Giordano below.
Joe Walsh: ‘I’d rather have a socialist in the White House than a con man’
Trump's former GOP challenger has written for The Washington Post this morning to rally the Never Trumpers.
"Some of my Republican and ex-Republican brethren have started implying that what never-Trump actually meant was something more like: fingers-crossed-I-really-really-hope-not-Trump-but-I-guess-sometimes-Trump if Democrats wind up nominating a self-described democratic socialist," he writes. "But that’s not how this works."
“If it were up to me, [Bernie] Sanders isn’t the guy I’d put in charge But when I finally came around to saying, ‘never Trump,’ I meant it.
“Lots of politicians stink, and people hold their noses and vote for them, anyway. But if you’ve already gone on record as a never-Trumper, and now you’re saying that you’ll vote for Trump because you don’t like the alternative, you’re not holding your nose, you’re inhaling deeply.”
Trump's former GOP challenger has written for The Washington Post this morning to rally the Never Trumpers.
"Some of my Republican and ex-Republican brethren have started implying that what never-Trump actually meant was something more like: fingers-crossed-I-really-really-hope-not-Trump-but-I-guess-sometimes-Trump if Democrats wind up nominating a self-described democratic socialist," he writes. "But that’s not how this works."
“If it were up to me, [Bernie] Sanders isn’t the guy I’d put in charge But when I finally came around to saying, ‘never Trump,’ I meant it.
“Lots of politicians stink, and people hold their noses and vote for them, anyway. But if you’ve already gone on record as a never-Trumper, and now you’re saying that you’ll vote for Trump because you don’t like the alternative, you’re not holding your nose, you’re inhaling deeply.”
Mike Bloomberg borrows Trumpian tactics to spin Bernie feud into gold
The billionnaire is cashing in on his beef with Sanders through the medium of baseball caps.
"Bring in the boss" will surely never catch on as slogan.
Bloomberg's spokesman Tim O'Brien has also been channelling Trump by denying something we all heard his man say with our own ears last night.
The candidate was about to claim he "bought" the Democratic blue wave that swept the House of Representatives in the 2018 midterms before stopping himself short in mid-sentence with a correction: "I bough... I got them..."
But O'Brien, speaking to John Berman on CNN's New Day, insists his man said "backed", not "bought". Hmmm.
The below is even more tragic.
