White House Coronavirus Task Force leader Vice President Mike Pence says he's 'still shaking hands here at the White House' even as the CDC says it spreads the disease

Advertisement
White House Coronavirus Task Force leader Vice President Mike Pence says he's 'still shaking hands here at the White House' even as the CDC says it spreads the disease
Mike Pence

Tom Brenner/Reuters

Advertisement

Vice President Mike Pence.

  • Vice President Mike Pence, who heads the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said he's "still shaking hands here at the White House." He noted, however, that he frequently washes his hands.
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises against shaking hands, as the coronavirus spreads by human contact.
  • Pence also defended Trump's bungled European travel ban announcement and said he didn't know how many people in the US had been tested for the virus.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has urged people to avoid coming in contact with "high-touch surfaces" like elevator buttons, door handles, and other people's hands.

But Vice President Mike Pence, who leads the White House Coronavirus Task Force, isn't exactly following that directive.

"I'm still shaking hands here at the White House," Pence told Alisyn Camerota, who anchors "News Today" on CNN, adding, "I'm also washing my hands very regularly through the day."

Advertisement

Pushing frequent hand-washing as a "common sense" practice that can help US citizens better protect themselves amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, he said.

Pence praised Trump's bungled travel ban announcement

Pence made a series of TV show appearances the morning after President Donald Trump announced sweeping travel restrictions from several dozen European countries to the US for 30 days. The list includes Schengen countries, which allow free travel between their borders without a passport, but excludes the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Two clarifications had to be issued soon after Trump's speech sowed confusion: First, Wednesday's proclamation only impacts "foreign nationals," not US citizens or legal residents returning home. Second, the travel ban doesn't apply to cargo coming in from Europe.

But Pence disagreed, telling Camerota, "I don't think there was confusion. The president took another historic step," similar to the administration's February 2 decision to deny foreign nationals who had been in China within the past 14 days permission to enter the US.

mike pence coronavirus

Associated Press/Manuel Balce Ceneta

Advertisement

Vice President Mike Pence and other officials speak to reporters during a coronavirus briefing in the Brady press briefing room of the White House, Friday, March 6, 2020, in Washington.

On NBC's "Today" show," he touted the "unprecedented" travel ban as being necessary because the epicenter of the coronavirus, which as of Thursday has infected more than 127,000 people and killed more than 4,700, has shifted from China to Europe, according to Pence.

Health officials have traced coronavirus cases in at least 30 US states to Europe, said Pence, who was unable to provide a concrete answer about how many Americans he thinks may contract the COVID-19 virus.

"There will be thousands more cases of coronavirus," he said.

"Thousands or millions?" Savannah Guthrie asked, and Pence replied, "I'll leave to the experts to make the estimates of how many people may be infected."

Advertisement

The US still badly lags behind other countries in testing

The US and South Korea reported their first coronavirus cases on the same day. In the weeks since, the US has conducted five coronavirus tests per million people, compared to South Korea's 3,692 tests per million people.

As of March 9, the US had tested fewer than 2,000 cases, according to the CDC. In fact, Camerota said, the CDC website makes it appear as if the number of tests is on the decline despite cases mounting around the nation.

Questioned on the matter, Pence said, "I don't believe they are" dropping and said he planned to implement a website that showed where cases are being reported nation-wide.

South Korea set up multiple 'drive-thru' testing centres for the coronavirus disease earlier in March.

REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

South Korea set up multiple 'drive-thru' testing centres for the coronavirus disease earlier in March.

Advertisement

Pence also praised the federal government's work with university hospitals as well as state and commercial laboratories to send new tests into the market and increase testing capacity.

When Camerota asked outright if the CDC website is providing incorrect details, Pence said the information from the agency was incomplete.

"No, I'm not saying they're wrong. I'm saying they may not be complete because we don't necessarily collect today all the information from state labs about the tests that are being done," he said.

{{}}