Friday, March 13, 2020

Trump declares national emergency -- and denies responsibility for coronavirus testing failures

Updated 5:47 PM ET, Fri March 13, 2020
Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump said Friday he was declaring a national emergency-- "two very big words" -- to free up $50 billion in federal resources to combat coronavirus even as he refused to take personal responsibility for administration failures early in the outbreak. 
The announcement was part of a raft of new measures Trump hopes can bring a roiling health crisis under control after a week of market seesaws and major disruptions to everyday life.
As he sought to project an air of competence, Trump denied there were missteps that some health experts say have aggravated the crisis.
"I don't take responsibility at all," he said, insisting problems that led to slow test-kit distribution were the fault of previous administrations. "We were given a set of circumstances and we were given rules, regulations and specifications from a different time."
    Speaking during an afternoon Rose Garden event, Trump gathered American retail executives to announce they were donating resources to institute drive-through testing at locations across the country, collected on a new online portal that will be available on Sunday evening.
    He said he was allowing his health secretary to waive certain regulations to provide more flexibility to doctors and hospitals responding to the outbreak.
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