Two rooms, two atmospheres. Under fire from critics for his silence on the alarming figures of the Covid-19 in the United States, Donald Trump goes Friday to Mount Rushmore for an evening of fireworks that he hopes to be a moment of unity in a country he’s struggling to muster. On the eve of National Day on July 4, the Republican President will speak under the gaze of four of his distant predecessors - George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln - whose monumental heads were carved from granite in this imposing memorial.
The Republican billionaire, who has been pretending for several days to ignore the spectacular rebound of the epidemic which is clouding the summer of Americans, does not hide his enthusiasm for this event for which some 7,500 people are expected. "It is going to be an extraordinary evening, with fireworks like few people have seen," he predicted on Thursday. "It will be magnificent!" "
Getting ready for Trump's trip to Mt. Rushmore like pic.twitter.com/fvZLLo5U0H
- The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) July 2, 202053,000 new cases in 24 hours
Will he evoke the resurgence of cases of Covid-19 in the south and west which "puts the whole country in danger" in the words of Anthony Fauci, director of the American Institute of Infectious Diseases? Will he finally wear a mask in public to set an example as demanded by many elected officials and personalities, including in his own camp?
In a very bad position in the polls four months to the day of the presidential election, the republican billionaire is sticking for the moment to a single message, unchanged: the coronavirus crisis is "managed", the American economy sets out again “stronger and faster” than expected and the year 2021 will be “historic”.
However, in striking contrast to Europe, records of contamination are broken daily in the United States. At least 53,069 new infections with the coronavirus were thus identified Thursday in 24 hours, according to the counting of the Johns Hopkins university, which refers, a record level since the beginning of the pandemic. This brings to more than 2.7 million the total number of cases detected in the country and 128,677 the number of deaths recorded since the start of the global health crisis.
Texas imposes mask
Many states have put the deconfinement on hold, even backtracked, hastily closing bars and beaches. The Republican Governor of Texas has announced that wearing a mask will now be mandatory in public places.
The White House tenant can expect a warm welcome in South Dakota, a sparsely populated state that he won in 2016 with more than 60% of the vote. And Republican Governor Kristi Noem does not intend to spoil the party. "We have told those who are worried that they can stay at home," she said on Fox News. "For those who want to join us, we will distribute free masks, if they decide to wear one. But there will be no social distancing ”.
- United States
- Donald trump
- Coronavirus
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