Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro Tied in Brazil Runoff Poll 
US Invites Putin to Miami G20, Opening Door to Trump Summit 
US Officials Split Over Response to Israeli West Bank Settlements 
Kremlin Says No Grounds Yet for Ukraine Peace Talks 
Mexico-US Trade Talks Delayed to October as Tariff Negotiations Continue 
Russian Strikes Kill Eight Across Ukraine as Energy Sites Hit 
South Korea, US Discuss Warship Building Cooperation 
Marco Rubio to Meet Russia’s Lavrov in New York 
Taiwan Vows to Advance US Arms Sales Ahead of Trump-Xi Meeting 
Trump Administration Plans Faster FDA Reviews for Smoke-Free Nicotine Products 
China Tightens Fentanyl Rules Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit 
Russian Missile and Drone Attack on Kyiv Kills Two, Damages Maternity Hospital 
Taiwan Thanks US for Support Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit 
Ghana Says Western Support Growing for Slave Trade Reparations 
Netanyahu Takes Aim at Mamdani as Israel Election Nears 
Europe Warns Russia Is Escalating Hybrid Attacks Across NATO 
Kremlin Says No Decision Yet on Putin-Trump December Summit 
Add as a preferred source on Google
The United States is the worst-hit country by the pandemic with over a million cases and over 73,000 deaths and counting. Speaking to the press, President Donald Trump described the pandemic as being worse than the attack on Pearl Harbor or 9/11.
BBC reports that Trump spoke to journalists at the Oval Office Wednesday. The President stated that the pandemic was the worst attack that the United States had ever seen. Trump even compared the pandemic to the attack on Pearl Harbor and 9/11. “This is the worst attack we’ve ever had. This is worse than Pearl Harbor, this is worse than the World Trade Center. There’s never been an attack like this,” said Trump.
Trump then noted that the coronavirus outbreak could have been stopped, pinning the blame on China for not containing the pandemic properly. “Could’ve been stopped at the source. Could’ve been stopped in China. It should have been stopped right at the source. And it wasn’t.”
When asked whether the virus was an act of war, Trump instead said that the outbreak was America’s enemy, rather than China. He explained that he viewed the pandemic as an invisible enemy. The Trump administration has often criticized China for failure to contain the virus when it first broke out in Wuhan, China back in December 2019. Trump believed that the virus originated in a Wuhan lab, further echoed by his aides, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
However, the Chinese state government in Beijing responded that this was the US trying to distract the public from their own failure to act quickly. The Trump administration has since been criticized on both sides for their delayed response to the virus.
Meanwhile, Trump is keen on reviving the country’s economy as it is partially tied to his chances of reelection. The coronavirus has caused the stock market to crash resulting in the country’s worst economic state in decades, and lawmakers scrambled to develop a stimulus plan. The pandemic has caused many Americans to get laid off and the unemployment data that will be turned in within the week appears to suggest that the country is in for an economic slump.
Major companies, such as GE, Airbnb, and United Airlines have since announced layoffs of thousands of positions.
