Pence notes surge but cites progress
Vice president delivers upbeat economic view
WASHINGTON — There was no presidential appearance and no White House backdrop Friday when the government’s coronavirus task force briefed the public for the first time since April.
The briefing at the Department of Health and Human Services was held as the number of confirmed new coronavirus infections per day in the U.S. soared to an all-time high of 40,000.
Vice President Mike Pence acknowledged a surge in new cases across the South and West, while backing the president’s desire to get the economy up and running.
“As we see new cases rising, and we’re tracking them very carefully, there may be a tendency among the American people to think that we are back to the place that we were two months ago — in a time of great losses and a great hardship on the American people,” Pence said.
But the vice president also took note of positive job numbers and added: “The reality is we’re in a much better place.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, sounded a more cautionary tone.
“As you can see, we are facing a serious problem in certain areas,” Fauci said. But he also was careful not to blame the recent spike on gatherings where people haven’t worn face masks or followed social distancing guidelines.
Pence announced that 16 states were seeing worrisome increases — up from 12 states on Wednesday. He said that there still is work to do but that it was important to reflect on how much the federal and state governments and health care workers have done to respond to the pandemic.
“This moment in the coronavirus pandemic is different” from the grim days when New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Louisiana struggled under the weight of the outbreak, he said.
America has since accelerated testing to 500,000 a day, which has contributed to the increase in reported new cases, Pence said.
He plans to travel next week to