Top seats of federal government shut down to public
WASHINGTON — The Capitol, White House and Supreme Court all declared the public off-limits for now, as President Donald Trump restricts air travel from Europe and Congress struggles with an aid package, all indications of a nation hunkering down in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
The monthlong restriction on travel from most of Europe is to begin at midnight today. There are now well over 1,000 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. and more than three dozen deaths from covid-19, the disease caused by the virus.
As closures, cancellations and fears confronted so many aspects of daily American life, the coronavirus question, for Trump and members of Congress, was becoming personal.
A senior Brazilian official who attended weekend events with Trump in Florida has tested positive for the coronavirus, marking the first time that someone known to have the virus was in close proximity to the president. Trump does not plan to be tested or go into self-quarantine, the White House said.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s communications director, Fabio Wajngarten, tested positive just days after traveling with Bolsonaro to a meeting with Trump and senior aides, including Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla.
White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement Thursday that “exposures from the case are being assessed, which will
dictate next steps.”
“Both the President and Vice President had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time,” Grisham said.
A photo of the president, the senator and Wajngarten shows the trio shoulder-to-shoulder at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort last weekend.
Scott said he was isolating himself. Trump, 73, said he wasn’t worried.
“We had dinner in Florida at Mar-a-Lago with the entire delegation,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “But we did nothing very unusual. We sat next to each other for a period of time.” Asked whether he should be tested, Trump replied, “I am not concerned.”
GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham, who was also at Trump’s club on the weekend, joined a growing list of lawmakers who have chosen to isolate themselves as a precaution. Most are doing so after interactions elsewhere.
Graham’s office said he had been tested for the coronavirus and was awaiting the result.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, demurred when asked whether the president should be in self-isolation.
“Questions like that I leave up to the physicians in charge of the president’s health,” he said.
Grisham said in a statement that “the White House Medical Unit and the United States Secret Service has been working closely with various agencies to ensure every precaution is taken to keep the First & Second Families, and all White House staff healthy.”
She said that under Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, “there is currently no indication to test patients without symptoms, and only people with prolonged close exposure to confirmed positive cases should self-quarantine.”
The president also said Thursday that he was considering added restrictions, such as limiting travel to domestic hot spots like California and Washington state. The State Department issued a global health advisory cautioning U.S. citizens to “reconsider travel abroad” because of the virus and associated quarantines and restrictions.
TALKS ON BILL
Aid package talks between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin raised hopes on Capitol Hill that a bipartisan agreement was in reach — within days if not hours — to further address the pandemic.
A congressional recess is scheduled for next week, but Pelosi vowed Thursday not to leave until action is taken, while Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced that he would cancel the recess to advance “bipartisan legislation to continue combating the coronavirus and keep our economy strong.”
“I think it would be wise to have folks here,” said Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, who is up for reelection in November. “This is such a serious issue. We need to be continually monitoring this as a group, not having us all out to the four winds.”
The House bill includes a $2 billion boost to state unemployment insurance programs, more than $1 billion in nutritional aid, a new paid-leave benefit for employees affected by the outbreak and an increase in federal Medicaid spending, as well as a guarantee of free coronavirus testing.
However, White House and congressional Republicans were wary of the bill’s costs and its potential burdens on employers.
“There are things in there that have nothing to do with what we’re talking about,” Trump told reporters. “So, you know, it’s not a way for them to get some of the goodies that they haven’t been able to get for the last 25 years.”
McConnell called the bill “an ideological wish list that was not tailored closely to the circumstances.”
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., meanwhile, told reporters that the Democratic bill contained “glaring problems” that would be difficult to resolve before the recess.
“We should not take a rush just because there is a bill,” he said. “We should make sure it works.”
Trump has proposed a payroll-tax holiday. That idea has gotten limited traction among both parties on Capitol Hill.
McCarthy suggested a narrower package could win GOP support — leaving broader measures, such as the payroll-tax cut, for another day.
“I know at the end of the day we will find to do what is right,” he said. “I think we can get this done in 24 or 48 hours. I think it’s critical that we do.”
Pelosi said Mnuchin’s suggestions had been “all very reasonable” and, like McCarthy, held out the possibility of a broader economic relief bill later.
“We are … agreeing to most of it, because they are not that different. So we don’t need 48 hours,” she said. “We need to just make a decision to help families right now.”
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, said most of the ideas advanced by House Democrats were acceptable to Republicans. He said he was in touch with the White House about tailoring the Democrats’ paid sick leave proposal to ensure it can be accessed more quickly, and that it doesn’t turn into an open-ended entitlement.
Last week, Congress passed an $8.3 billion emergency spending plan to address public health needs arising from the crisis.
NO POLITICAL RALLIES
As classes, sports events, concerts and conferences are canceled across the nation, Trump said he would be halting his signature campaign rallies, telling reporters that he needs a “little separation until such time as this goes away.” His rivals, former Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, said they would no longer hold large political gatherings and their staffs would work from home as the race for the presidency moved online.
The three branches of government closed to visitors — Congress shut down the Capitol to the public until April, White House tours have been suspended and the Supreme Court will turn back visitors.
The Smithsonian said it was canceling all public events and will temporarily close its network of museums and the National Zoo, starting Saturday.
For most people, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The vast majority of people recover. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to get over it.
Information for this article was contributed by Zeke Miller, Lisa Mascaro, Jill Colvin, Andrew Taylor, David Biller, Aamer Madhani, Lauran Neergaard, Martin Crutsinger, Laurie Kellman, Kevin Freking, Bill Barrow and Jill Colvin of The Associated Press; by Mike DeBonis, Erica Werner, Jeff Stein Seung Min Kim and Paul Kane of The Washington Post; and by Emily Cochrane of The New York Times.