In his first coronavirus briefing in months, President Trump admitted the Covid-19 crisis will probably get worse before it gets better. The President encouraged “everybody” to wear a mask and said “whether you like the mask or not, they have an impact.” Dr. Peter Hotez is the Dean of the School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor University in Texas where cases are spiking in the state and the reopening has been paused. He tells AC360 President Trump lacked empathy and compassion for the Southern states in dire situations and he showed no urgency in making a federal plan. Plus, protesters and federal agents continue to clash in downtown Portland, Oregon as local officials and lawmakers scrutinize the increased federal presence. Mayors of six large cities sent a letter to the administration slamming deployment of federal forces to stop protests. Democratic Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler is one of those mayors and has been monitoring the protests in his city for weeks. He joins AC360 and says the presence of the federal officers and their actions is what’s making the people of Portland so angry especially when the protests were mostly peaceful. 

Airdate: July 21, 2020

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