In a statement to reporters, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the president’s action would “help ensure foreign nationals who have been in Brazil do not become a source of additional infections in our country.”
Both the proclamation and McEnany pointed out that the new restrictions did not apply to the flow of commerce, and that trade between the two nations was still an economic priority.
Brazil’s president, Jair Bolsonaro, has been criticized for calling the virus a “little flu.” On Tuesday, the country recorded 1,179 fatalities. The following day, Brazil had the largest spike of cases in 24 hours, with close to 20,000 cases, as recorded by the World Health Organization.
Vox recently reported that Bolsonaro mishandled the outbreak by downplaying the seriousness, vocally opposing state governors’ decisions to impose lockdown measures, pushing for businesses to reopen and personally attending anti-lockdown protests. The Brazilian president also touted the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which has potentially lethal side effects. Many of his positions align with what Trump himself has championed in the U.S.
Meanwhile on Sunday, Bolsonaro held a rally with his supporters — without wearing a face mask and with lax social-distancing measures.
Source: politico.com
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