Trump Reportedly Pivoted on COVID-19 Message After Republican Areas Hit Hard

Donald Trump has faced intense scrutiny for his response to the coronavirus pandemic, but now he appears to be pivoting on his messaging. The President has in the past dismissed the rising cases of the virus, but The Washington Post reports that he decided to take it seriously after he was told Republican voters were at risk.

As coronavirus cases have continued to rise in numerous states, senior advisers began to talk to Trump about which areas have been hit the hardest. His team allegedly referred to Republican states as "our people," telling the President that they were among the worst hit. To top it off, projections indicated that the virus is likely to surge in new cases across some very important states for the 2020 election, most notably across the Midwest with Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

Nearly 150,000 people have died from the disease in the U.S.

Over the past week, it has been noted that Trump's tone on the virus has changed somewhat. Now that the pandemic has worsened, particuarly impacting red states, Trump's attitude towards COVID-19 has been a bit different, with him openly admitting that it's a problem. Despite this, he doesn't appear to be too concerned about the pandemic, because he took a golfing trip on Saturday, something he was also criticized for.

The news comes just as Trump's National Security Advisor, Robert O'Brien, tested positived for the coronavirus.