Trump Launches PR Campaign: "US Conducted More COVID-19 Tests in Shorter Time Than South Korea"

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly mentioned that the number of tests conducted in the United States over the past 8 days was greater than the number of tests conducted in South Korea over the past 8 weeks in response to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), engaging in a 'public relations campaign.' This appears to emphasize that the administration is actively responding amid the rapid increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S.

President Trump's remarks came during a virtual town hall meeting interview with Fox News held at the White House Rose Garden that day. Debbie Bux, coordinator of the White House COVID-19 Task Force (TF), who joined the interview, said, "I want to say something briefly to the American people," and added, "Due to improvements in the testing process, the U.S. has probably conducted more tests in the past 8 days than South Korea has in 8 weeks," which prompted a strong reaction from President Trump.

President Trump said, "I didn’t know that. I just heard that number from Debbie for the first time?that we have conducted more tests than South Korea in a short period," and asked Coordinator Bux to repeat it once more. He emphasized again, "We have conducted more (tests) than South Korea in a short period," and "We are conducting significantly more (tests) than South Korea."

President Trump asked Coordinator Bux about the approximate number, and Bux replied that South Korea has about 290,000 tests, while the U.S. far exceeds 300,000, saying, "We have achieved this amount in the past 7 to 8 days. We need to do more." In response, President Trump said, "We are increasing (testing capacity) very, very rapidly. It is going up significantly." Trump also stressed that this fact should be remembered and claimed, "Our testing is better. It is very sophisticated."

President Trump mentioned his own experience of undergoing a COVID-19 test, saying, "I will tell you it was not the most pleasant thing in the world," and added, "We will soon have much simpler tests." He continued, "But we are really doing good testing. And we have done more in 8 days (than South Korea)," and repeated, "No one knows that. I just heard that number a few minutes ago."

In the early stages of the COVID-19 situation, the U.S. faced criticism for shortages of diagnostic kits and testing capacity. During this process, the U.S. testing capacity was often scrutinized in comparison to South Korea in the media and congressional hearings. The political news outlet The Hill reported that South Korea has been regarded as one of the countries with high testing standards, and the statistics released that day show that U.S. testing has recently increased significantly.

President Trump had previously requested medical equipment support related to COVID-19 during a phone call with President Moon Jae-in. The Blue House stated that President Moon said he would provide maximum support for related medical equipment. The Blue House also added that President Trump showed interest in South Korea’s COVID-19 response situation and evaluated it as "doing very well."