PHILADELPHIA _ President Donald Trump pushed Monday morning for Pennsylvania to reopen its economy faster as rumors swirled that he would visit the state later this week.
"The great people of Pennsylvania want their freedom now, and they are fully aware of what that entails. The Democrats are moving slowly, all over the USA, for political purposes," Trump tweeted Monday morning. "They would wait until November 3rd if it were up to them. Don't play politics. Be safe, move quickly!"
The president is said to be planning a visit to Pennsylvania this week, although information was still murky Monday morning. One Pennsylvania Republican source told The Philadelphia Inquirer the president was expected to visit Allentown, possibly to stop at a mask manufacturer there.
An Associated Press reporter noted that the Federal Aviation Administration has put out an advisory for flight restrictions in Allentown Thursday that appears to be tied to presidential travel.
But several other Pennsylvania Republican sources said they had no word of a presidential visit.
Over the weekend Politico reported that Trump was expected in Philadelphia this week.
Gov. Tom Wolf, who has come under increasing pressure from Pennsylvania Republicans to speed up the reopening of the state's economy, fired back in a morning news conference conducted online, saying that politicians and businesses defying the state's stay-at-home orders are acting "selfish and unsafe" and are giving up the fight.
"Some have elected to surrender to this enemy," Wolf said. "These folks are choosing to desert in the face of the enemy, in the middle of a war that we Pennsylvanians are winning and that we must win."
Asked about Trump's tweet he said he would continue a "measured, staged" reopening.
"I don't know how you stay safe and move quickly. We're trying to move deliberately," Wolf said.
U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Philadelphia Democrat, tweeted at Trump that as a Pennsylvanian, "let me tell you what we really want: for you to get a clue and start acting like a real president."
The White House has not responded to requests for comment. The Trump campaign and Allentown officials referred questions to the White House.
Trump's tweet and possible visit comes as Wolf has laid out a phased reopening of Pennsylvania's economy, and as the debate continues to rage about whether states should move more quickly to restart economic activity, or if the health risks are too great.
Last week Trump visited an Arizona facility that manufactures protective equipment.
