Coronavirus: Trump says Easter with ‘packed churches’ would be ‘beautiful time’ to reopen US

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Donald Trump claims he is targeting the Easter holiday on 12 April to issue an order that would end – rhetorically, at least – America's coronavirus shutdown so churches are "packed" from coast to coast.

"I think Easter Sunday and you'll have packed churches all over our country, I think it would be a beautiful time. And it's just about the timeline I think is right," he said in an interview with Fox News anchor Bill Hemmer, even though his own public health officials have warned the outbreak might spread, leading to hundreds of thousands of infected Americans by year's end.

Mr Trump, whose conservative political base is, in part, composed of millions of conservative Christians, called the religious holiday a "special" day for him personally. Mr Trump has not talked extensively about his religious beliefs since taking office.

During a Fox News town hall earlier in the day from the White House, the president said a prolonged economic slowdown because of a coronavirus lockdown would "destroy" the United States and its economy. He claimed there would be thousands of suicides because people would be sequestered in their homes and possibly unemployed.

In Mr Trump's mind, Americans would continue "social distancing" and vigorous hand-washing once back at work. During the interview with Fox, he said specifically that Americans who work in restaurants are eager to clock in again.

And during the town hall, Vice President Mike Pence said Mr Trump has requested his coronavirus task force bring him a set of options for how to implement a national re-opening next month. Mr Pence, who heads that group, told Mr Hemmer the task force is drawing up a set of options to soon present to the president.

Mr Trump also said he does not regret referring to the coronavirus as the "Chinese Virus," a term some called racially charged and said sparked racism in the United States.

"I don't regret it, but they said we did it. They said it came through our soldiers," he said of some Chinese officials claiming the US military brought the super bug into their country.

"They lost thousands of people. They've been through hell," Mr Trump said, indicating he no longer wants to "make a big deal" of the flap.