WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he had ordered federal housing officials to suspend evictions and foreclosures until the end of April as the fast-spreading coronavirus crisis forced a number of Americans out of work or reduced their wages.
Trump also said he would invoke the Defense Production Act, a Korean War-era law giving the federal government more authority to force private companies to produce needed goods.
The authority could help address shortages in medical equipment such as masks, gloves and ventilators, or supply goods needed to combat the spreading virus.
"There's never been an instance like this where no matter what you have it's not enough," Trump said at the White House.
The two actions further underscore the level of economic and political crisis that the coronavirus has inflicted on the country and much of the world.
Trump compared the challenge to World War II, when young people volunteered for military service and workers and companies swiftly pivoted to a wartime economy, churning out tanks and planes instead of cars and appliances.
"Now it's our time," Trump said. "We must sacrifice together because we are all in this together and we'll come through together."
