Trump Coronavirus Address: Live Stream Info Amid Calls For President To Declare A National Emergency

President Trump on Wednesday prepared to unveil his response to the coronavirus but was reported reluctant to declare a national emergency, fearing it would spook an already swooning stock market. Trump planned a 9 p.m. EDT address on the heels of the World Health Organization’s decision to declare a global pandemic.

The address was to be broadcast on the White House YouTube channel or on White House Live. It was to be preceded by a 5:30 White House press briefing.

Equities entered bear territory Wednesday, closing at least 20% lower than their February highs, wrecking what Trump had seen as his strongest argument for reelection. The Dow Jones Industrial average suffered yet another four-figure loss, capping a string of steep plunges that began last week. The Dow was off nearly 5.9% Wednesday led by airline issues while the S&P 500 declined nearly 4.9%.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned lawmakers the outbreak is going to get a lot worse, despite assurances from Trump that the virus will “go away.”

“We must be much more serious as a country about what we might expect,” Dr. Fauci told a House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing. “We cannot look at it and say, ‘Well, there are only a couple of cases here, that’s good.’ Because a couple of cases today are going to many, many cases tomorrow.”

Fauci said Tuesday the coronavirus is 10 times deadlier than the flu, which causes 20,000 to 50,000 deaths a year. The death toll so far this season is 16,000.

The number of confirmed U.S. coronavirus infections soared past 1,100 Wednesday with more than 30 deaths. Worldwide, 122,400 cases have been confirmed along with nearly 4,600 deaths.

U.S. government and other scientists published a report Wednesday indicating the infection spreads through the air, from touching surfaces and from coming into direct contact with an infected person. They found the virus can live in the air for as long as three hours, on copper for four hours, on cardboard for as long as 24 hours and on plastic and stainless steel for as long as three days.

Speculation on what Trump would do centered on a declaration of a national emergency, invoking the Stafford Act, which would free up $40 billion in aid. Health and Human Services Secretary reportedly was pushing for a national declaration, but Vice President Mike Pence, who was appointed to head up the administration response, was opposed. The president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, was said to be researching the issue.

Trump was expected to opt instead for more limited action that would help small businesses, cut payroll taxes and guarantee paychecks for hourly workers.

Trump keeps trying to tamp down fears of the virus, repeatedly comparing it to the flu while experts have been careful to say the virus is not a flu and is more contagious. They also say they have no idea whether it will wane once the weather starts warming.

“The president isn’t persuaded because [an emergency declaration] contradicts his message that this is the flu,” a Republican who speaks to Trump told Politico.

Trump tweeted Wednesday afternoon about the competence of government health experts and praised his administration’s response to the outbreak despite a shortage of testing kits that has slowed diagnoses.

Democrats, meanwhile, were putting the finishing touches on an economic stimulus package, which was expected to come up for a vote Thursday.