White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said Friday that President Trump should go back to giving regular coronavirus press briefings, saying it reflected better in the polls.
“I just think the people want to hear from the president of the United States,” she said. “Doesn’t have to be daily. Doesn’t have to be for two hours. But in my view, it has to be.”
Mrs. Conway praised the president for still talking about the pandemic and touting the American production on testing and ventilators, but acknowledged that his approval rating was higher when he was at the podium.
She also noted that while the president isn’t holding briefings, Vice President Mike Pence has been leading the White House coronavirus task force well.
Mr. Trump was present and holding pandemic press briefings nearly every day during March and April, joined by top health officials.
Mrs. Conway’s comments come as the president’s approval ratings, particularly concerning how he’s handled the coronavirus, are dropping.
An ABC News/Washington Post poll released Friday showed that only 38% of Americans approved of the president’s response — a stark drop from 46% in May and 51% in March.
Additionally, the survey found that 64% of Americans have trouble trusting the president about the pandemic.
Recently, despite the warnings from health officials like Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the nation’s top infectious disease experts and a member of the White House’s coronavirus task force, about the rise in cases and spikes in several states, Mr. Trump has downplayed the situation’s severity.
“I think we are going to be in two, three, four weeks, by the time we next speak, I think we are going to be in very good shape,” the president told Gray TV’s Greta Van Susteren earlier this month.
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.