Fauci Says It’s ‘False’ To Say The Coronavirus Outbreak Is Under Control; Here Are All The Times Trump Said It Was

Topline: Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the nation’s top health officials, said Sunday that it would be a “false statement” to say that the coronavirus outbreak is under control, even as President Trump has repeatedly sought to downplay the severity of the virus infecting over 1 million people globally.

• Trump has several times insisted that the virus is under control in the U.S. even as Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has continued to beat a drum that the outbreak would continue to disrupt American life for many weeks and months. 
• “That would be a false statement,” Fauci said, responding to a question on CBS Sunday talk show “Face the Nation” about whether the virus is under control. “We are struggling to get it under control and that’s the issue that’s at hand right now.”
• Fauci, who has become a familiar face during the coronavirus outbreak often speaking at White House press conferences, added that even though it’s clear that mitigation is “working” virus death counts would continue to balloon. 
• The U.S. has the most cases in the world and case numbers continue to climb, even as social distancing measures that are keeping more than 250 million Americans under stay-at-home orders show signs of working. 
• Trump, for his part, has careened back and forth between acknowledging the severity of the outbreak and brushing it off. 
• On Saturday, for instance, Trump said there would be a “lot of death” from the virus in the coming week but soon after expressed his desire to allow Americans to attend church services on Easter. 

Crucial quote: Trump has repeatedly asserted that the virus was under control in the U.S. 

“We have it totally under control,” President Trump said on January 22. “It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It’s going to be just fine.” 

“We think we have it very well under control,” Trump said during a speech in Michigan on January 30 in Michigan. ‘We have very little problem in this country at this moment — five — and those people are all recuperating successfully.” 

“We have it very much under control in this country.” Trump said February 23, speaking to reporters. 

Trump tweeted on February 24 that the virus was “under control.”

Trump, speaking at a conservative political action summit on February 29 said: “And I’ve gotten to know these professionals. They’re incredible. And everything is under control. I mean, they’re very, very cool. They’ve done it, and they’ve done it well. Everything is really under control.” 

“It’s a very contagious virus, it’s incredible, but it’s something we have tremendous control of,” Trump said during a press conference on March 15.

The next day, though, Trump said, “If you’re talking about the virus, no, that’s not under control for any place in the world. … I was talking about what we’re doing is under control, but I’m not talking about the virus.”