When asked if he will refrain from interacting with Pence to avoid the spread of coronavirus, Trump joked, “I don’t breathe when I’m with him.” Trump and Pence shared the stage for the entirety of questioning on Sunday. After a rambling response from another question about hydroxychloroquine, Trump calls CNN “fake news”, and we have moved back to science. When asked how sure we can be about numbers and models, Deborah Birx said the experiences of Spain and Italy can work as a model for what we can expect in the United States. “After four weeks of mitigation we are starting to see these countries coming across their apex,” she said. “This is promising for us.” In these extraordinary times, the Guardian’s editorial independence has never been more important. Because no one sets our agenda, or edits our editor, we can keep delivering quality, trustworthy, fact-checked journalism each and every day. Free from commercial or political bias, we can report fearlessly on world events and challenge those in power. Your support protects the Guardian’s independence. We believe every one of us deserves equal access to accurate news and calm explanation. No matter how unpredictable the future feels, we will remain with you, delivering high quality news so we can all make critical decisions about our lives, health and security – based on fact, not fiction. Support the Guardian from as little as $1 – and it only takes a minute. Thank you. Make a contribution - The Guardian When asked why he is promoting hydroxychloroquine, an unproven treatment for coronavirus, Trump said again, “What do they have to lose?” “We don’t have time to take a couple years to test it out,” he said. Despite saying there is a “glimmer of hope” in the fight against coronavirus, Trump agreed with warnings from the US surgeon general who said Americans will face a “Pearl Harbor moment” in the next week. “Hopefully we can get this over with,” he said. “This is a horrible thing for the whole world, we are one of 182 countries affected by this.” Trump said he has not spoken to Boris Johnson today after hearing he was going to the hospital. “He’s a great gentleman, I just hope he’s OK,” he said. The Army Corps of Engineers is constructing extra hospital bed space in McCormick Place, an events center in Chicago. Some 500 beds have been installed there and 2,500 more are set to be installed, Pence said. Pence said 3,000 patients at the Henry Ford hospital in Detroit will be participating in a formal study to determine the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for coronavirus. Vice-president Mike Pence is taking the stage now. “We are truly blessed to have the kind of leadership we have,” he said, referencing the members of the coronavirus task force that spoke previously. Fema official says millions of masks and gloves are en route to hospitals Now John Polowczyk, who leads Fema’s supply chain task force, is discussing the distribution of supplies across the US. He said 2.8m masks and 11.8m gloves are en route to be distributed to hospitals and nursing homes. Polowczyk said at Trump’s command FEMA is also distributing hydroxychloroquine to pharmacies. The presser has been turned over to Dr Deborah Birx, coordinator for the White House coronavirus task force. She noted that after four weeks of mitigation in Spain and Italy they are seeing the pandemic slow. The White House is hoping to see similar effects in the US in coming weeks. “Over the next week, although we’ll see rising number of cases of people who lose their lives to this illness, we are also hopeful we will see a stabilization of cases across these large metro areas where the outbreak began several weeks ago,” she said. Trump again claims we are seeing the disease peak in coming days. “We see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Trump said. “Hopefully in the not-too-distant future we will be proud of the job we all did.” Trump said the US is close to a vaccine. “We are very far down the line on vaccines, we’ll see how that all works,” he said. “Johnson and Johnson’s doing a great job and working very hard, a vaccine would be great therapy a therapy. We’ll see what happens.” Dr Anthony Fauci has repeatedly said a vaccine is at least a year away. After promoting unproven cures for coronavirus, hydroxychloroquine and azythromicin, Trump hedges: “What do I know? I’m not a doctor,” he said. Trump says the US has ordered 29m doses of hydroxychloroquine Trump said the US has ordered 29m pills of hydroxychloroquine and wondered what Americans “have to lose” by taking the drug. My colleague Oliver Milman wrote about why the malaria medication may not be the miracle cure Trump is hoping for: Trump claims the coming days will be the “peak” of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States. “Our warriors in this life and death battle are the incredible doctors and nurses and health care workers on the frontline of the fight,” he said. “We pledge to them our eternal gratitude and everlasting support.”