Watch live: White House holds coronavirus briefing with markets in free-fall

March 9, 2020

President Trump and members of the coronavirus task force are briefing reporters at the White House Monday night, with the markets in free-fall over fears of the spreading virus. The president met with his economic advisers Monday afternoon, after returning from a weekend in Florida.

While on Air Force One, the president traveled with Congressman Matt Gaetz, who announced Monday afternoon that he is self-quarantining after coming into contact with a confirmed coronavirus patient at the Conservative Political Action Conference at the end of February. Gaetz told the Washington Post he placed himself in a corner of the president’s plane.

How to watch:

What: Coronavirus task force holds press conference
Date: March 9, 2020
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
Location: The White House, Washington, D.C.
Online stream: Live on CBSN – in the player above and on your mobile or streaming device

The Trump administration has tried to push the message that it has a handle on the virus, even as it continues to spread. Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top immunologist with the National Institutes of Health, said on Sunday the country has moved past the “containment” phase and is now in the “mitigation” phase.

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“We’ve been on this from Day One,” Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said on Fox News Monday morning.

The economic uncertainty about coronavirus pushed the markets into free fall Monday, with U.S. stocks dropping a shocking 7% as markets opened Monday morning. Azar said the president “has the tools and knows the tools” to keep the economy strong.

Some of the greatest concern over the epidemic lies with the administration’s failure to get sufficient tests out quickly enough. President Trump said on Friday there are enough tests for anyone who wants one, a claim contradicted by his own top health officials. On Saturday, FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said U.S. public health labs currently have enough kits to test 75,000 people, and another 2.1 million tests for COVID-19 would be shipped by manufacturers to commercial labs by Monday.