Trump tries and fails to get reporter to remove mask at news conference

Reuters reporter Jeff Mason asks the President a question during Monday's news conference. Sarah Silbiger/Reuters

In his Monday afternoon news conference, President Trump got into an exchange with Reuters correspondent Jeff Mason after Mason would not remove his face mask at the request of the President.

The President stopped Mason as he began to ask the first question, saying "you're going to have to take that off, please." He gestured to the space between the reporter and the podium, inquiring, "you're...how many feet are you away?"

Mason replied that he would just speak louder to counter the effects of the mask. 

Trump was not satisfied with this response, telling the reporter his voice was "very muffled" with the face covering, "so if you would take it off, it would be a lot easier."

Mason raised his voice and repeated his offer to speak louder, asking "is that better?"

The President sighed saying, "it's better. Yeah, it's better."

Later in the news conference, Trump remarked that one reporter who did remove his mask sounded "so clear. As opposed to everybody else, where they refuse."

This is not the first time that the President has requested a reporter take off his or her mask so that he could hear a question more clearly, but his disappointment with Mason's response was notable.

President Trump said there could be a coronavirus vaccine "before a very special date."

While Trump did not specially mention which date, he has previously suggested that a vaccine for coronavirus could be ready before Election Day.

"President Trump is getting this vaccine in record time. By the way, if this were the Obama administration, you wouldn't have that vaccine for three years, and you probably wouldn't have it at all," Trump said today at a news conference.

Facts First: It's possible that a vaccine could be approved by the Food and Drug Administration at some point in November, but there is obviously no firm timeline or guarantee that one will be. And even when one is approved, it will likely still be many months before it's widely available across the US.

You can read CNN's full fact check on Trump's previous suggestion that there could be a vaccine ready before Election Day here.

Watch here:

President Donald Trump speaks from the North Portico of the White House on Monday. Patrick Semansky/AP

President Trump said congressional Democrats don't want to make a stimulus deal because such a deal would be beneficial to him in the November election.

"They think it's good for politics if they don't make a deal," Trump said at an ongoing Labor Day news conference

"They don't want to make a deal because they know that's good for the economy. And if they make deal that's good for the economy — and therefore, it's good for me for the election in November, Nov. 3 — and therefore, they're not going to make a deal," he added.

About the stimulus stall: Lawmakers don't appear any closer to striking a deal on additional coronavirus stimulus. Democrats are pushing for a wide-ranging, multi-trillion dollar proposal with funding for schools, rental assistance, health providers and small businesses.

Senate GOP leadership, meanwhile, has been working for weeks behind the scenes toward building internal consensus on a scaled-back, or "skinny" proposal that would include funds for education, small business, a scaled-back enhanced federal unemployment benefit and liability protections.

Watch CNN analysis here:

Florida health officials reported 1,838 new Covid-19 cases on Monday, the lowest daily tally of cases in nearly three months.

The last time the state reported a low caseload was on June 15 when it recorded 1,758 coronavirus cases, according to numbers released by the Florida Department of Health.

In spite of the holiday weekend, today’s new count reflects a downward trend of new coronavirus cases and does not deviate that much from the number of new cases reported on previous Mondays. Last Monday, on Aug. 31, Florida reported 1,885 new cases.

The total number of positive coronavirus cases across the state is at least 648,269, and today’s death toll of 22 fatalities brings the state total to 11,871 among Florida residents.

Court Philippe Chatrier, seen here in May, just got a new retractable roof ahead of the French Open. Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images

Despite the rising numbers of coronavirus cases in France, the French Tennis Federation announced Monday the 2020 French Open will be open to fans when play begins later this month. The Grand Slam event was originally scheduled for May but was postponed by the pandemic.

Tournament officials say Roland-Garros, where the tournament is played, will be divided into three zones, with a maximum of 5,000 fans in each of two zones and a maximum of 1,500 in the third.

Seats in the stands will be allocated under strict tournament protocols, with a maximum of four spectators sitting in adjacent seats indoors. Spectators over the age of 11 will be required to wear face coverings. Qualifying rounds will be played behind closed doors between Sept. 21 and 25.

According to tournament director Guy Forget, all players will be tested upon arrival in Paris. They will be approved to play if they test negative when arriving and again 72 hours later. Players will also be tested every five days as long as they remain in contention and must stay in one of two hotels arranged by tournament organizers.

What the numbers look like: French officials have confirmed more than 367,000 cases and more than 30,000 deaths from Covid-19, the seventh-highest number of fatalities caused by coronavirus worldwide according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center.

Public gatherings in Denmark's capital and 17 other municipalities will be capped at 50 people, down from 100, after a rise in coronavirus cases. 

The Danish health ministry called the rise in cases in Copenhagen and surrounding areas "worrying" and said the measures will initially be in place until Sept. 22.

To this date, Denmark has recorded 18,540 Covid-19 cases and 628 deaths from the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University.

President Trump said he'll hold a "Labor Day News Conference" at 1 p.m. ET today.

In a tweet announcing the event, Trump said the "jobs numbers, and the Economic comeback, are looking GREAT."

Remember: The US job market remains in a deep hole during the ongoing pandemic, and now the recovery is losing some of its momentum.

Employers added 1.4 million jobs in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Job growth at that level marks a slowdown from earlier this summer: Employers added a revised 1.7 million jobs in July and 4.8 million jobs in June.

The world needs to “celebrate the successes where we can” when it comes to Covid-19, Maria Van Kerkhove, a World Health Organization infectious disease epidemiologist, said during a Friday news briefing.

“We need to highlight and support each other in sharing the stories of what has worked,” Van Kerhove added.

She added that while many people may be "tired" of the pandemic, "we will get throught this."

“I think many people — individuals, governments — everyone is tired. And seeing resurgence in many places can be very difficult to handle — mentally, physically — but we will get through this," she said.

Italian professor Alberto Zangrillo, personal doctor of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, speaks during a press conference at the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, on September 4. Piero Cruciatti/AFP/Getty Images

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's condition is improving four days after being admitted to hospital with Covid-19-related pneumonia, the head of the intensive care unit at the San Raffaele Hospital said Monday.

According to Professor Alberto Zangrillo, "The overall clinical picture appears to be improving and is consistent with the haematochemical evidence and the resumption of a robust specific immune response, associated with a reduction in inflammation indices."