Trump says masks are good as US cases hit daily record

WASHINGTON (AFP) — U.S. President Donald Trump, who has yet to be seen in public wearing a face mask during the coronavirus pandemic, said Wednesday he would have “no problem” doing so, while reiterating his belief that the contagion will just “disappear.”

“If I were in a tight situation with people, I would absolutely,” Trump said in an interview with Fox Business, as many U.S. states are seeing a surge in the number of cases.

But he added: “Usually I’m not in that position.” Trump noted that most people he sees at the White House are tested for COVID-19 before coming in contact with him.

“I’m all for masks — I think masks are good,” he said, while adding his doubts about whether face coverings needed to be “mandatory” nationwide to curb the spread of the deadly virus.

“You have many places in the country where people stay very long distance” from each other, he said.

“I think we are going to be very good with the coronavirus. I think that, at some point, that’s going to sort of just disappear, I hope,” he said.

When pressed by the interviewer whether he truly believed the virus would vanish, he said: “I do. I do. Yes, sure, at some point. And I think we’re going to have a vaccine very soon too.”

Trump made similar statements in February, when he said: “It’s going to disappear. One day, it’s like a miracle, it will disappear.”

The U.S. notched more than 52,000 new COVID-19 cases in 24 hours Wednesday, a tally by Johns Hopkins University showed, a new one-day record as infections surge around the country.

Restaurants, bars and beaches in the world’s worst-hit nation closed from California to Florida, as states reeling from yet another surge in the deadly virus braced for Independence Day festivities.