Trump Told Journalist He Downplayed Coronavirus Threat

President Donald Trump told journalist Bob Woodward in February that he intentionally downplayed the coronavirus threat to the Unites States before issuing the government’s initial social distancing guidelines in March. Trump made these comments on-the-record; the interviews will be used in Woodward’s upcoming book on Trump’s presidency, “Rage." CNN obtained an advance copy of “Rage,” as well as some clips of Woodward's recordings, and published some excerpts Wednesday. White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Trump "has never lied to the American public on COVID,” and that he was "expressing calm and his actions reflect that.” Trump said in a press conference that he was referring to his public statements, saying “we don’t want to instill panic." Anthony Fauci told Fox News Wednesday that he "didn't get any sense that [Trump] was distorting anything." Woodward has since received backlash for waiting to publish Trump's comments until more than six months later; Woodward told the Associated Press Wednesday he needed time to verify the accuracy of the comments. Media coverage from left- and center-rated outlets focused on Trump's comments; some voices from the left suggested that lives could have been saved if the president had taken action sooner. Coverage from some right-rated outlets tended to highlight McEnany's comments and Fauci's comments.