WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Director of Public Health said Sunday that the country should prepare for a tragedy comparable to the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the bombing of Pearl Harbor, while the most government-held warned that the new coronavirus might not be completely eradicated. These were some of the most pessimistic forecasts to date for the short- and medium-term future. But hours later, President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence tried to show a more optimistic tone, hinting that the complicated weeks ahead could mean the beginning of the end of the crisis.
“We started to see a light at the end of the tunnel,” Trump said during a report at the White House.” We began to see signs of progress,” Pence added, the president also insisted that his government’s two forecasts—spread 12 hours apart—were not contradictory and are not even “so different.” I think we all know we have to get to a certain point — and that point is going to be horrendous in terms of death — but it’s also a point where things will start to change,” Trump said. “Right now we’re very close to that level.” The representative added that he thinks the next two weeks “are going to be very difficult. At the same time, we understand what they represent and what that moment represents and hopefully we can end this.” Either way, Trump’s own speech also had moments of pessimism. The president offered some of his most extensive comments to date for the families of the victims of the virus, asking the country to pray for them and “ask God for comfort in his moment of pain.” With the faith of our families and the spirit of our people and the grace of our God, we will resist,” the representative said. “We’ll get over it.” Hours earlier, public health director Jerome Adams told CNN, “This will be the toughest and saddest week in the lives of many Americans, to be honest.” It will be our Pearl Harbor, our September 11th and it won’t be something in one place,” said Adams, the highest-ranking doctor in the country. “It will happen all over the country. And I want America to understand.” The number of cases in the United States has already exceeded 337,000, and the death toll exceeded 9,600. More than 4,100 of those deaths are in New York City, but on Sunday there was a ray of hope when Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo said his state recorded a slight decline in the number of new fatalities in the past 24 hours. Either way, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said his entity could run out of respirators by the end of the week.
