Trump says press briefings not worth time & effort

US President Donald Trump on Saturday night tweeted that his press briefings were “not worth the time & effort,” as his administration prepared to adjust his public presence amid the coronavirus pandemic towards addressing the nation’s economic woes.

The tweet came two days after the President used a briefing to muse about the injection of chemical disinfectants to fight COVID-19, drawing warnings from manufacturers and the nation’s top medical professionals.

The White House claimed Friday that Trump was misinterpreted, though the president later asserted he was speaking “sarcastically.”

Tweeting on Saturday, one of the few days in which he has not held a daily briefing since the start of the outbreak, Trump said: “What is the purpose of having White House News Conferences when the Lamestream Media asks nothing but hostile questions, & then refuses to report the truth or facts accurately.”

According to the John Hopkins University, the US has recorded over 936,000 cases of the new virus and 53,694 deaths.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.