As US Battles COVID-19, Donald Trump Goes Out For Golf Outing

STERLING: Ever since the White House declared a "national emergency" over COVID-19 pandemic on March 13, US President Donald Trump on Saturday went on his first golf outing.

Trump visited Trump National Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida on a spring sunny day, wearing a white cap and white polo shirt.

This was the first time Trump visited a golf property since March 8.

On the same weekend, Trump met Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro at his Mar-a-Lago retreat. Bolsonaro's press secretary later tested positive for COVID-19. Later, WH staffers who were in contact with the secretary went into quarantine but none has tested positive for coronavirus.

Trump is trying to promote that US is returning to normal although the death toll is expected to surpass 1,00,000 in the coming days.

The US diagnosed its first cases of the coronavirus in Washington state on January 20. The US has been the hardest-hit country in the coronavirus pandemic by far, in deaths and number of infections. As of Saturday evening, the US had recorded 97,048 deaths and 1.6 million cases of the virus.

According to a media report, Trump's coronavirus task force coordinator, Deborah Birx, told a White House briefing on Friday that Americans over this Memorial Day weekend should "be outside, play golf, play tennis with marked balls, go to the beach - but stay six feet apart!"

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