Trump, back from Arizona, returns to White House

U.S. President Donald Trump returned to the White House late Monday, after flying back to Washington from Arizona where he campaigned earlier in the day.

The president entered the White House without responding to media questions, including one from a reporter who asked if he planned to fire the country's top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci.

Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic that has killed nearly 220,000 Americans remains a central issue to voters, but Trump on Monday blasted his government's own scientific experts as too negative about the coronavirus pandemic.

At a rally in Prescott, Arizona, Trump assailed Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden for pledging to heed the advice of scientific experts, saying dismissively that his rival “wants to listen to Dr. Fauci."

The doctor is both respected and popular, and Trump's rejection of scientific advice on the pandemic has already drawn bipartisan condemnation.