Coronavirus pandemic in the US

Fourth of July celebrations will be held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. this year, President Trump announced today at his coronavirus briefing.

Last year, Trump held a Fourth of July celebration at the Lincoln Memorial in what was called a “Salute to America.” The event included remarks from the President, military tank displays, music from military bands and military flyovers.

Trump said that attendance for the Washington event will likely be limited to “25% of what we had last year.” 

“This year, most likely, we’ll be standing 6 feet apart,” he added. 

The President also compared his Fourth of July celebration turnout at the Lincoln Memorial with Martin Luther King Jr.’s. 

“I saw a magnificent picture of Dr. Martin Luther King and I saw a magnificent picture of our event last year and both of them were maxed out. It was beautiful to see. Beautiful — very similar,” Trump said. 

Infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci championed the mitigation efforts implemented across the US and considers them the "basis for our being able to say that we can now think seriously about reopening America."

Fauci's comments come after numerous states, including Georgia and Tennessee, have said they would reopen parts of their economies soon.

Fauci concluded his remarks with a request for lawmakers around the country to be careful to avoid a "rebound" of coronavirus cases.

"I plead with the American public, with the governors, with the mayors for the people with the responsibility, although I know one has the lead to leapfrog over things, don't do that. Do it in a measured way. This is a successful formula. The problem is if we don't do that, there is a likelihood that we'll have a rebound. And the one way not to reopen the economy is to have a rebound that we can't take care of," he said.

See Dr. Fauci's message here: 

CNN’s Anderson Cooper clashed with Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman this afternoon in a must-see interview.

Watch it in full here:

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said today businesses in his state can start reopening this week.

His plan involves three phases and "will not move to the next phase until the data tells us that it's safe to do so," Stitt said.

Starting on Friday, Stitt said "personal care businesses" can reopen for appointments "only if they adhere to strict sanitation protocols" and are in communities that do not have more restrictions in place. Those businesses include hair and nail salons, barbershops, spas, and pet groomers. 

Stitt said restaurants, dining rooms, movie theaters, sporting venues and gyms can open on May 1 if they maintain "strict social distancing and sanitation protocols." 

He also said that places of worship can reopen for in-person meetings or worship on May 1 but noted that staff and volunteers will need to wear masks when interacting with the public. 

Bars, however, will remain closed

He stressed "even as things begin to open, it is so important that we continue to practice social distancing." 

"This is a careful and measured approach designed to protect our most vulnerable will safely easing Oklahomans back to work," he said.

President Trump said he signed his immigration executive order before the coronavirus press briefing.

The order is expected to temporarily halt the issuance of new green cards and work visas — steps that had already effectively been in place amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump continued: "We have to take care of our patients, we have to take care of our great American workers and that's what we're doing. So I just signed it just before coming into the room, and very important."

Watch Trump's announcement here:

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced an incremental plan to open specific businesses over the next few weeks. 

If the openings go well, he said, the state will open up even more businesses on May 4. 

On April 27, elective surgeries will be allowed in clinics and hospitals, but they have to be simple procedures that don’t require an overnight stay. The patient has to have been tested for exposure to COVID-19 before the procedure and must not have any underlying health conditions.

Here's a timeline of the reopenings:

Hutchinson said he is very comfortable with these target dates and that they must continue to operate in a sequential fashion so that they can measure results.

President Trump said he disagreed "strongly" with Gov. Brian Kemp's decision to open up parts of Georgia's economy while the coronavirus pandemic continues to threaten the state.

Some context: Kemp, a Republican and staunch ally of Trump, on Monday announced Georgia would allow nail salons, massage therapists, bowling alleys and gyms to open Friday.

In-person church services can resume. And restaurants and movie theaters can open Monday. His order also bars cities from imposing their own restrictions on businesses.

It's the most aggressive move yet to reopen a state's economy as Trump optimistically pushes for a May 1 end to some statewide lockdowns. It also came as a surprise to mayors and some members of Kemp's own coronavirus task force.

Watch the moment here:

President Trump defended the decision to reopen states amid the coronavirus pandemic, saying the virus will not "be coming back" in as many cases as the US saw earlier this year.

"And if it comes back, though, it won't be coming back in the form that it was. It will be coming back in smaller doses that we can contain. What (CDC Director Robert Redfield) was saying and I spoke to him at great length, he was saying if it should come back together, now you have the flu and you have the embers of corona," Trump said.

He continued: "But in my opinion, from everything I've seen, it can never be like anything we've witnessed right now. What we've just gone through, we will not go through. You could have some embers of corona, and you could have a big flu system ... We will not go through what we went through for the last two months."

Reporter to Trump: How can you say the virus will not come back at the same level? 

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention clarified comments he made to the Washington Post about how the second coronavirus outbreak could emerge this winter in conjunction with the flu season to make for an even more dire health crisis.

"There's a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will actually be even more difficult than the one we just went through," CDC Director Robert Redfield said in a story published Tuesday. "And when I've said this to others, they kind of put their head back, they don't understand what I mean."

Speaking moments ago at the White House, Redfield said that the second wave "could be more difficult, more complicated" and not "worse."

Watch here: