The Trump administration is hoping for better numbers than projections of 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the United States from coronavirus show, but "Americans must know the future is in their hands," Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday.
"We're very confident, just as tens of millions of Americans did in the last 15 days, that we're going to see families all across this country to put the health of America first," Pence told Fox Business' Charles Payne, adding, "by all of us doing all that we can, we'll lower the number of losses" and get to the point where the United States is back to work.
Trump on Tuesday presented sobering numbers, based on projections compiled by Dr. Deborah Birx, showing the range of deaths that could happen if mitigation efforts, such as staying at home, continue, compared to 2 million deaths that could occur if no steps are taken, Pence said.
"That it is the reason why the president made the decision on the spot Saturday, to extend for 30 more days the president's coronavirus guidelines for America," he said.
The president thought it was important Americans see the same data he had seen in making the call to stretch the mitigation efforts to the end of April, rather than ending them at the first of the month, Pence said.
The way to lower the number of "heartbreaking losses" in the United States, he added, is to keep President Donald Trump's 30 Days to Slow the Spread Plan in play.
Pence on Wednesday visited a Walmart distribution center in Virginia, and lauded the efforts of workers there and nationwide to get vital supplies into the stores.
"The food supply in America is strong," Pence said. "We're developing vaccines and therapies at a record level. We've spun up a whole new approach to testing in America. Trump engaged a private-public partnership with companies in the United States, and that, combined with healthcare workers and state and federal leadership, we'll get through this, and we'll get through it together."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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