President Donald Trump appears to be adamant to reopen the United States for business after the social distancing period. During the latest White House briefing, Trump revealed that he is putting together a council to help reopen the country and teased who may be included in the said council.
During the briefing, Trump revealed that he was putting together a group made up of medical and business leaders that will guide the administration into reopening the United States economy. The members of the said council, referred to as “Opening our Country Council,” have also been reportedly teased, but the official announcement was to be made on Tuesday. The President stated that the group will be bipartisan, considering the effects the pandemic has brought upon the country.
The reported lineup of the council members includes Trump’s daughter and political adviser Ivanka Trump, her husband and fellow adviser Jared Kushner, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, as well as other figures from the private sector.
The screenshot of the reported lineup reported on Fox News made the rounds on social media, leaving many people furious. Former GOP policy director and independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin for one, tweeted, “Not a single scientist. Not one. Does anyone wonder how we reached 23,000 dead Americans and counting?”
Professor and author Tom Nichols also weighed in on the supposed list, saying that if Hillary Clinton were president and placed her daughter Chelsea Clinton and her husband in the group, “There would be fires across the prairies as far as the eye can see.”
However, contrary to Fox News’ predictions, Trump revealed that neither Ivanka nor Jared will be part of the council. This council will be different from the coronavirus task force that is spearheaded by Vice President Mike Pence, but the two are expected to work closely together.
Trump also said that the administration will be issuing guidelines and recommendations over the next few days. This is in regard to the decision of whether or not to reopen the United States as soon as possible while relaxing the social distancing guidelines recommended by the CDC.