President Trump said Friday that he is hopeful about returning to the campaign trail and holding “bigger than ever rallies” in spite of the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic.
“I hope we can do rallies. It’s great for the country. It’s great spirit. It’s great for a lot of things,” Mr. Trump said during a White House press briefing.
“I think they’re going to be bigger than ever,” Mr. Trump continued, adding: “I hope we can resume rallies because I think they’re an important part of politics.”
Mr. Trump made the comments after a member of his reelection team was reported earlier Friday to have indicated that the president is optimistic about holding campaign rallies before the White House race ends November 3.
“This coronavirus will pass and the president is looking forward to getting back out on the campaign trail and holding rallies,” said Tim Murtaugh, a communications director for the Trump campaign, ABC News reported.
“We will get back to those rallies. Never fear, the president is certain that we’re going to be back out there speaking directly to the American people,” said Mr. Murtaugh, according to the outlet.
Mr. Trump’s reelection campaign has not held an in-person rally since March 2, when thousands of supporters attended an event held at an arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Governors of most states have imposed stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders in the weeks since to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.
Public health officials, including members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, have advised that Americans avoid large gatherings to prevent the pandemic from worsening.
More than 700,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the U.S. since late January, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 30,000 people in the U.S. have died from the disease and over 59,000 have recovered, according to the university.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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