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A version of this story appeared in the July 22 edition of CNN's Coronavirus: Fact vs. Fiction newsletter. Sign up here to receive the need-to-know headlines every weekday.
"It will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better," Trump said, in what has widely been regarded as a play to improve his political plight. "Something I don't like saying about things, but that's the way it is."
In his first virus-related briefing since April, delivered against the backdrop of tumbling poll numbers and plummeting public confidence, Trump acknowledged that the outbreak was bad -- while simultaneously peddling multiple untruths -- and finally urged Americans to wear face masks, though he did not wear one himself.
The same public health experts who have been pleading for Americans to wear face coverings for months were noticeably absent from the briefing on Tuesday. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious diseases expert, responded to Trump's claim that he was an alarmist in an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, just minutes before the President spoke. "I consider myself more of a realist," Fauci said.
But deep into the crisis that has seen nearly 4 million Americans infected and more than 140,000 dead -- close to one-quarter of the global total -- Trump offered no clear plan to lead the country out of its worsening viral nightmare, or even much comprehension of why things got so bad, Stephen Collinson writes.
And it didn't take Trump long to undermine his grave tone by re-upping his counter-scientific argument that one day the virus will just simply "disappear."
YOU ASKED. WE ANSWERED
Q: Has the US done better than most in fighting the virus?
A: The short answer: No. But that's not what Trump said during Tuesday's briefing, in which he revived many other untruths. Trump tried to paint a picture of the globe in the grip of suffering similar to that of the US.
"If you watch American television, you'd think that the United States was the only country involved with and suffering from the China virus," Trump said. "The fact is that many countries are suffering very, very badly, and they've been suffering from this virus for a long time. We've done much better than most."
In fact, many other developed nations in Asia and Europe have been far more successful in reducing the spread of the pandemic.
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WHAT'S IMPORTANT TODAY
Globe nears 15 million cases
As the world edges closer to 15 million confirmed cases, developing nations throughout Latin America, South Asia and Africa are largely driving the current spike in infections. Then there's the United States, which leads the globe in new cases, despite having far more resources to cope with the crisis than its poorer counterparts.
Behind the US, the global surge is concentrated in Brazil and India. The number of cases in these hotspots could actually be much higher than reported, according to new studies, one of which estimates that nearly one in four people in Delhi have had Covid-19 (millions more than have been recorded).
The situation in the Americas continues to spiral, with almost 900,000 new infections and 22,000 deaths reported in the region last week. And outbreaks are also re-emerging elsewhere, in places like Australia and South Africa, which had largely contained the virus through lockdown measures.
A lesson for the US on masks from the rest of the world
President Donald Trump has long been reluctant to wear a mask in public, but on Tuesday he gave his most unequivocal backing yet to public health experts' calls for the American public to mask up. His abrupt change of tack comes amid a politicized debate over masks in the US, but in many other nations that discussion is long over and mask mandates are becoming the norm.
Even UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who was initially reluctant to impose such rules, made face coverings compulsory on public transport in England from mid-June, with a £100 ($125) penalty for those who refuse to do so. France made masks compulsory in all enclosed public spaces on Monday, extending the mandate from cinemas and museums to include shops, banks and shopping malls. Police can issue €135 ($155) fines for those who break the rules.
Other countries made masks mandatory months ago. In the Czech Republic, masks became compulsory for everyone anywhere outside their home in mid-March. German states introduced fines of between €15 and €5,000 for failing to wear a mask in April. In May, Spain made face coverings mandatory in public spaces where a two-meter distance can't be guaranteed. Scotland, Italy, and Greece have also made it compulsory to wear face coverings in retail stores, while countries including Cuba, Pakistan and Iran have made them compulsory in busy public spaces.
And this is old news in much of Asia, where mask-wearing has been widely accepted since the region was hard-hit by the 2003 SARS epidemic -- another respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus.
A warning to Africa
The World Health Organization has sounded the alarm over the spread of Covid-19 in Africa, warning that South Africa's surging numbers could be a precursor of impending outbreaks across the continent.
"While South Africa is experiencing a very, very severe event, I think it is really a marker of what the continent could face, if urgent action is not taken to provide further support," Mike Ryan, Executive Director, WHO Health Emergencies Programme, said Monday during a media briefing in Geneva.
"I'm very concerned right now that we're beginning to see an acceleration of disease in Africa."
Until recently, Africa has remained relatively untouched by the pandemic compared to the rest of the globe, but the spike in South Africa -- where cases have increased by about 30% over the last week alone -- could signal the end of that record. Zimbabwe is also dealing with a spike in cases, and has imposed a dusk to dawn curfew on its citizens to try to contain it. Still, there are success stories: one of Africa's most densely populated countries, Rwanda, has managed to keep the virus under control through testing and contact tracing.
ON OUR RADAR
TOP TIPS
These three simple acts could stop the Covid-19 pandemic in its tracks, even without a vaccine or additional treatments: Washing your hands regularly, wearing masks and social distancing.
That is according to a new study published in the journal PLoS Medicine, which created a new model to look at the spread of the disease and prevention efforts that could help stop it. The contact rates in the study were based on people's interaction in the Netherlands, but the model is appropriate for other Western countries, the researchers at the University Medical Center Utrecht said
"A large epidemic can be prevented if the efficacy of these measures exceeds 50%," they wrote.
TODAY'S PODCAST
"It's not rocket science. If we all did it uniformly [universal wearing of masks and social distancing] I believe that we could turn things around." -- Dr. Anthony Fauci
As coronavirus cases in the US near 4 million, CNN checks in with the nation's top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci. CNN anchor Jake Tapper asks Dr. Fauci about schools, testing, vaccines and his relationship with President Trump. Listen Now.
