According to a new report from The New York Times, when President Trump was downplaying the threat of the coronavirus in the outbreak’s early days, he was reflecting advice from his senior staff member and son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
Although his tone has recently undergone a sharp turnaround, Trump initially claimed the situation was being inflamed by the “fake news media.” Kushner was tasked with investigating the outbreak according to the Times’ report, and advised the president “that the media’s coverage exaggerated the threat” — a narrative that Trump echoed when speaking to reporters and lashing out on Twitter.
Kushner also reportedly sought a bigger role for himself on the coronavirus task force even though he lacked sufficient knowledge on the subject.
Read the full report over at The New York Times.
Featured image via Gage Skidmore (Flickr)