Donald Trump floats tax cuts as response to coronavirus impact
US president to talk to Congressional leaders about ‘very dramatic’ economic measures
President Donald Trump on Monday said he would propose a “major” economic relief package, including a possible payroll tax cut and measures to help hourly-wage workers, in an effort to reduce the negative impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
Speaking alongside the members of the White House coronavirus task force, Mr Trump said that after meeting Republican lawmakers on Tuesday, he would unveil a “very dramatic” package of measures aimed at helping the hardest hit parts of the economy.
“I will be having a press conference to talk about various things that we’re doing economically, they’ll be very major,” Mr Trump said.
Steven Mnuchin, Treasury secretary, said the measures would target workers who were hardest hit, in addition to small businesses. He said they intended to provide liquidity to tide people and companies over while the US deals with the spread of coronavirus.
“The economy will be in very good shape a year from now,” Mr Mnuchin said. “This is not like the financial crisis.”
As the number of Americans with the virus grew to more than 600 on Monday, Mr Trump continued to come under harsh criticism for how he is tackling the coronavirus crisis — particularly his rhetoric, including advice that contradicts health authorities.
Mr Trump has played down the seriousness of the situation, even as people close to him have quarantined themselves after interacting with a person who tested positive.
Mark Meadows, a congressman who was named the fourth White House chief of staff during the Trump presidency, on Monday said he was quarantining himself after learning that he may have interacted with a man who caught the virus after attending a conservative political conference in the Washington area. Matt Gaetz, a Florida lawmaker who attended the conference and also flew with Mr Trump on Air Force One on Monday, has also self-quarantined.
The White House said Mr Trump had not been tested since he had not had “prolonged close contact” with any known patients and did not have any symptoms.
Earlier on Monday, Mr Trump blamed Russia and Saudi Arabia for a plunge in US stocks. “Saudi Arabia and Russia are arguing over the price and flow of oil. That, and the Fake News, is the reason for the market drop!” he tweeted, adding that the collapse in oil prices would be “good for the consumer” by lowering petrol prices.
In another tweet lashing out at critics, the president said 37,000 Americans had died from the flu last year, while only 22 people had so far been killed by coronavirus.
“Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on,” he tweeted.
Congress is also looking at measures to help contain the expected economic damage. A spokesperson for Chuck Grassley, the Republican chairman of the Senate finance committee, said the senator was “exploring the possibility of targeted tax relief measures that could provide a timely and effective response to the coronavirus”.
Chuck Schumer, the top Senate Democrat, said Mr Trump had not said how he would combat the virus and was “more focused on the stock market than addressing this pandemic”.
US authorities have identified more than 600 cases that have resulted in at least 22 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Florida and Ohio became the latest states to step up their responses by declaring states of emergency on Monday.
Ted Cruz, a Republican senator, said he would stay home in Texas after learning that he had also met the man who tested positive after attending the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington two weeks ago. Mr Trump and Mike Pence, his vice-president who leads the White House coronavirus task force, also attended the event.
Speaking at a White House briefing on Monday, Mr Pence said he had not been tested for the virus.
The White House response to the crisis drew more criticism at the weekend after the US surgeon-general and Anthony Fauci, the respected head of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and member of the White House coronavirus task force, gave conflicting numbers for the number of test kits that had been distributed.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been under pressure to boost testing, after criticism that the administration rolled out testing too slowly. Nancy Messonnier, a vaccine expert at the agency, said there were enough lab kits available to health authorities to test up to 75,000 people. Private labs are also increasing testing.
California was poised for an influx of cases on Monday as the Grand Princess, a cruise ship carrying 3,500 passengers, docked in Oakland. The ship had 21 passengers and crew who have contracted the virus. Mr Trump on Friday suggested he did not want the ship to dock since it would raise the numbers of reported cases on the US mainland.
Separately on Monday, the US Securities and Exchange Commission told staff at its Washington, DC headquarters to work from home after an employee was treated for “respiratory symptoms” possibly linked to the coronavirus.