Transcript - Remarks: Donald Trump Holds a Bilateral Meeting With Leo Varadkar of Ireland - March 12, 2020 | Factba.se

Donald Trump

00:00:00 - 00:00:18 (19 sec)

Well, thank you all very much. It’s an honor to be with the Prime Minister of Ireland. We’ve known each other now for quite a while, and we have a great relationship and a great relationship with Ireland. And we have a lot to discuss. We will be talking about the obvious, and we’ll also be talking about the virus that’s hit the world.

Donald Trump

00:00:18 - 00:00:37 (18 sec)

I see they’ve cancelled their big soccer games, their championship games, and a lot of other games. They’ve cancelled a lot over in Europe and all over the world. So this is big world problem. We’ve taken some bold steps. We took the original boldest step of all when we closed very early with China.

Donald Trump

00:00:37 - 00:01:01 (25 sec)

That helped us save thousands of lives. And we went very early with Europe. And I think that’ll likewise be very good, and hopefully we can get it back together very quickly in terms of reestablishing with China. That’s on track to -- something happened fairly quickly, because they’ve made a lot of progress over the last three of four weeks.

Donald Trump

00:01:01 - 00:01:20 (19 sec)

And certainly, with Europe, we think we can go, hopefully, very quickly. They have some hotspots that are really bad, but they’ll get them better. Germany, I guess, has some problems now. France has some problems -- some pretty big problems. And Italy, of course, is probably record-setting in terms of what they’ve gone through.

Donald Trump

00:01:20 - 00:01:40 (20 sec)

Italy is having a very hard time. But we think we’ll reestablish very quickly once this ends, and it’s just a question of time. And I think it’ll go pretty quickly. Stay away from people and wash your hands, and do all of the things that we’re supposed to be doing a little bit anyway. But it’ll be -- it’ll go very quickly.

Donald Trump

00:01:40 - 00:01:49 (9 sec)

I know that -- we were just talking -- that Ireland has closed their schools. And maybe I’d ask the Prime Minister to say a little bit about what you’re doing in Ireland having to do with that we’re going through.

Leo Varadkar

00:01:49 - 00:01:52 (3 sec)

First of all, thank you, Mr. President --

Donald Trump

00:01:52 - 00:01:52 (0 sec)

Leo Varadkar

00:01:52 - 00:02:12 (20 sec)

-- for having us again here today in the run-up to St. Patrick’s Day. Just another opportunity, I think, to show how close Ireland and America are and how good our relationship is politically and economically and everything else. And St. Patrick’s Day has become, I think, a symbol of how close Ireland and America are and how we’re going to continue to stay close into the future.

Leo Varadkar

00:02:12 - 00:02:30 (18 sec)

The big concern in Ireland and Europe at the moment, as you know, is COVID-19. And we’ve acted, just as you’ve acted, decisively in the last couple of days. So we have restrictions on travel, for example, to Italy for a few days already. But as of tomorrow, our schools will close, our crèches will close.

Leo Varadkar

00:02:30 - 00:02:38 (8 sec)

We’re banning all indoor gatherings of more than 100 people and outdoor gatherings of more than 500. And this is all based on the public health advice --

Donald Trump

00:02:38 - 00:02:40 (1 sec)

Right. Right. Sure.

Leo Varadkar

00:02:40 - 00:02:55 (15 sec)

-- from our CDC that we need to do this for a couple of weeks to make sure the virus doesn’t spread. And we’re particularly trying to protect older people and people with chronic diseases. So we’ve had about 30 or 40 cases so far, one death. But we have a real concern that that could rise, and that’s why we’re taking the action that we’re taking.

Leo Varadkar

00:02:55 - 00:03:19 (24 sec)

But, as you know, it’s a virus that’s gone pandemic; it’s all over the world. Knows no borders. Knows no nationalities. And I think we all need to work together in the world on this. And America in particular, you’re the richest country in the world. You’ve got great scientists, great companies, great universities, and we need them working on treatments, working on tests, and working on a vaccine, because that’s -- that’s what will get us on top of this.

Donald Trump

00:03:19 - 00:03:22 (3 sec)

Right. And we’re making great progress there, I will say.

Leo Varadkar

00:03:22 - 00:03:30 (8 sec)

I was with the Vice President this morning, who I know is heading up the task force for you, and he gave me a lot of confidence that you’re getting on top of this and you’re investing in this.

Donald Trump

00:03:30 - 00:03:30 (0 sec)

Question

00:03:30 - 00:03:37 (7 sec)

Mr. President, can you confirm if Ireland will be excluded from your travel ban -- your European travel ban you announced last night?

Donald Trump

00:03:37 - 00:03:54 (17 sec)

Well, they know, and I think it was made very clear last night who is and who isn't. And we’ll be discussing that. We’ll be discussing some other moves that we’re going to be making. And I think it’s going to work out very well for everybody. But it’s a world problem, and you do need separation in some cases.

Donald Trump

00:03:54 - 00:04:04 (10 sec)

You have some areas that are very heavily infected, and you have some areas that aren’t, frankly. But we do need separation for a little period of time, in some cases.

Leo Varadkar

00:04:04 - 00:04:25 (21 sec)

Just saying that the President has excluded Ireland from the travel ban. And one of the things that we have in Ireland is CBP, American border security, in Ireland. I went through it myself yesterday, and they were asking the right questions -- whether people had been to China, things like that. So that puts us slightly in a different position.

Donald Trump

00:04:25 - 00:04:37 (12 sec)

And one of the reasons the UK, basically, has been: It’s got the border; it’s got very strong borders. And they’re doing a very good job. They don’t have very much infection at this point, and hopefully they’ll keep it that way.

Question

00:04:37 - 00:04:48 (11 sec)

Mr. President, there are many European leaders who are upset that they weren’t consulted about the travel ban. Can you explain your rationale for not consulting with them first before announcing it last night?

Donald Trump

00:04:48 - 00:05:04 (17 sec)

Well, we get along very well with the European leaders, but we had to make a decision, and I didn’t want to take time and -- you know, it takes a long time to make the individual calls. And we are calling, and we have spoken to some of them prior to -- some of the majors, prior to. But we had to move quickly.

Donald Trump

00:05:04 - 00:05:28 (23 sec)

I mean, when they raise taxes on us, they don’t consult us, and I think that’s probably one in the same. They’ve done things -- the European Union, as you know, has done some very big tax raises over the years, not so much with me because I won’t put up with it. But they haven’t consulted us. In the case of the European Union, I consulted with many people.

Question

00:05:28 - 00:05:31 (4 sec)

Do you have any idea what the overall economic impact of these travel restrictions will be?

Donald Trump

00:05:31 - 00:05:49 (18 sec)

Well, it’ll be a big impact, but it’s a bigger impact, and it’s also a human impact, which is more important, frankly, than the financial, when you lose thousands of additional lives. As an example, if I didn’t close very, very early, Leo -- you know, we closed very early with China, and I took a lot of heat, including from you people.

Donald Trump

00:05:49 - 00:06:06 (17 sec)

A lot of heat. They called me everything from a “racist” to everything else. It was terrible. And the same people, then they say, “Oh, he closed too fast. Why did he close…” -- most of them said, “Why did he close with China?” That turned out to be a great move. What we did with Europe is -- this was the time.

Donald Trump

00:06:06 - 00:06:26 (20 sec)

And China -- a lot of it came from -- when you think of what happened to Europe, because it was very fast and very furious, and what happened is a lot of people went from China into Europe, and Europe suffered tremendously. You know, you see what’s going on. And so I just wanted that to stop as it pertains to the United States.

Donald Trump

00:06:26 - 00:06:27 (2 sec)

And that’s what we’ve done -- we’ve stopped it.

Question

00:06:27 - 00:06:36 (9 sec)

What are your plans, Mr. President, about campaign rallies, about travel outside the White House? You originally had some travel on the schedule for tonight.

Donald Trump

00:06:36 - 00:06:56 (21 sec)

Right, I did. We had some big rallies. We cancelled one that we were thinking about doing in Las Vegas, as you know, and one in Reno, Nevada. We had one -- we had about three of them in Nevada, actually. And we had four or five of them that we were thinking about. We have a big one in Tampa, all sold out.

Donald Trump

00:06:56 - 00:07:15 (18 sec)

We have over 100,000 requests for tickets, but I think we’ll probably not do it because people would say it’s better to not do. You know, we need a little a separation until such time as this goes away. It’s going to go away. It’s going to go way. I was watching Scott -- I was watching Scott this morning, and he was saying within two months.

Donald Trump

00:07:15 - 00:07:27 (12 sec)

But, you know, in the meantime, we want to lose as few people as possible. So important. And what is the number as of this morning? Is it 32? You could tell me. Is it 32 deaths? Steve? Around that.

Question

00:07:27 - 00:07:28 (1 sec)

Donald Trump

00:07:28 - 00:07:50 (22 sec)

I mean, think of it: The United States, because of what I did and what the administration did with China, we have 32 deaths at this point. Other countries that are smaller countries have many, many deaths. Thirty-two is a lot. Thirty-two is too many. But when you look at the kind of numbers that you're seeing coming out of other countries, it's pretty amazing when you think of it. So, that's it.

Question

00:07:50 - 00:07:53 (3 sec)

Are you going to invoke the Stafford Act today, declaring a national emergency?

Donald Trump

00:07:53 - 00:08:12 (19 sec)

Well, we have things that I can do. We have very strong emergency powers under the Stafford Act. And we are -- we have it -- I mean, I have it memorized, practically, as to the powers in that act. And if I need to do something, I'll do it. I have the right to do a lot of things that people don't even know about.

Question

00:08:12 - 00:08:14 (2 sec)

Are you going to do that today or something today?

Donald Trump

00:08:14 - 00:08:30 (16 sec)

Well, I don't want to say that, but, you know, at some point, it may be some of the more minor things at this point. But, you know, look, we're in -- we're in great shape. Compared to other places, we are in really good shape, and we want to keep it that way. That's why I did the ban with respect to Europe.

Question

00:08:30 - 00:08:36 (6 sec)

Mr. President, [Inaudible] emergency actions that you could take last night with regard to workers --

Donald Trump

00:08:36 - 00:08:38 (2 sec)

I have a lot of emergency actions that I can take.

Question

00:08:38 - 00:08:39 (1 sec)

But with regard to workers --

Donald Trump

00:08:39 - 00:08:40 (1 sec)

Question

00:08:40 - 00:08:42 (2 sec)

-- what are you looking at to help American workers?

Donald Trump

00:08:42 - 00:08:56 (14 sec)

Well, we're looking at a lot of things, including paid leave, and -- we're looking at many things. We're also making sure they're going to get their salaries. We have other workers too, and those are people that work for tips, and nobody thinks about them. And we're including them in a lot of our schedules.

Donald Trump

00:08:56 - 00:09:09 (13 sec)

We're also making sure that the companies, which are good companies, stay solvent, have the money necessary to keep functioning. So we have a lot of things that we're working on with the financial markets. And it's going to work out fine. You know, we're --

Question

00:09:09 - 00:09:11 (2 sec)

When will you decide?

Donald Trump

00:09:11 - 00:09:20 (10 sec)

You have to remember, the stock market, as an example, is still much higher than when I got here. And it's taken a big hit, but it's going to all bounce back and it's going to bounce back very big at the right time.

Question

00:09:20 - 00:09:23 (3 sec)

When will you decide, though, for the American workers, what steps you will take --

Donald Trump

00:09:23 - 00:09:47 (24 sec)

Well, we're deciding right now, and we're dealing also -- prior to even the Stafford Act, we're dealing with the Democrats in Congress and we'll see what can be done. I happen to think that a payroll tax cut would be a very good idea. It very dis- -- you know, it distributes it -- really distributes it very evenly among middle class and other workers.

Donald Trump

00:09:47 - 00:10:07 (19 sec)

I mean, many workers. It would be a great thing. I happen to think it would be a great thing even beyond this, okay? So we're looking at the payroll tax cut, and that won't come immediately because that's a stronger measure. But we are looking to do that. And I think, at the right time, Congress will probably go along with it, because it really is the most sensible thing.

Donald Trump

00:10:07 - 00:10:16 (10 sec)

We had the biggest bankers in the world here yesterday, getting their opinions. They all thought payroll tax cut would be a great thing. It would evenly and quickly distribute a lot of money.

Question

00:10:16 - 00:10:18 (2 sec)

Do you support the House bill -- the House Democrat bill?

Donald Trump

00:10:18 - 00:10:25 (7 sec)

No, because there are things in there that have nothing to do with what we're talking about. So, you know, it's not a way for them to get some of the goodies that they haven't been able to get for the last 25 years.

Question

00:10:25 - 00:10:31 (6 sec)

Mr. President, will Irish citizens always be welcome to America throughout this coronavirus pandemic?

Donald Trump

00:10:31 - 00:10:44 (13 sec)

Always. Always. Always. Just like your Prime Minister, always. They will be not only welcome -- loved. We have millions -- what is the number now, would you say? It changes every year. It gets actually bigger.

Leo Varadkar

00:10:44 - 00:10:47 (2 sec)

Yeah, well, about 35 million are of Irish --

Donald Trump

00:10:47 - 00:10:48 (2 sec)

Can you imagine? It's got to be one of our --

Leo Varadkar

00:10:48 - 00:10:49 (1 sec)

-- Irish blood.

Donald Trump

00:10:49 - 00:10:52 (3 sec)

-- it's got to be one of our biggest. No, we -- we love the Irish.

Question

00:10:52 - 00:10:57 (4 sec)

Do you support Irish citizens getting access to the E-3 visa?

Donald Trump

00:10:57 - 00:11:05 (9 sec)

We're going to be looking at that. We're going to be talking about that today. It's a very important part of our conversation. It's going to be, actually, a very important part of our conversation today.

Question

00:11:05 - 00:11:12 (6 sec)

Are there concerns about Huawei, the Chinese telecoms company and its operations and its connections with countries like Ireland? Is that going to come up today?

Donald Trump

00:11:12 - 00:11:23 (11 sec)

Well, I think there's a lack of security. If they use Huawei, there's a real problem with intelligence and intelligence security. And we'll see what happens. We'll be discussing that point also.

Question

00:11:23 - 00:11:28 (5 sec)

Mr. President, can't an American still bring back coronavirus under these new travel restrictions?

Donald Trump

00:11:28 - 00:11:29 (1 sec)

Question

00:11:29 - 00:11:31 (2 sec)

Can't an American still bring back coronavirus?

Donald Trump

00:11:31 - 00:11:52 (20 sec)

Sure. But we have them very heavily tested. If an American is coming back or anybody is coming back, we're testing. We have a tremendous testing set up where people coming in have to be tested. And if they are positive and if they're able to get through, because if they're, frankly, if they're not -- we're not putting them on planes if they're -- if it shows positive.

Donald Trump

00:11:52 - 00:12:16 (24 sec)

But if they are -- if they do come here, they have to -- we're quarantine -- it’s going to be a strong enforcement of quarantine. Look, the key is you have to have separation. We have to have separation or this thing takes longer to go away. But the real -- really important -- and I think you can say this for your country, I think we can say if for a lot of countries, for all countries, hopefully: It goes away.

Donald Trump

00:12:16 - 00:12:39 (23 sec)

It's going away. We want it to go away with very, very few deaths. People have, you know, we call it cases -- how many cases do you have? Well, relative to other countries, we have very few cases relative to certain of the -- of the major countries that really have a bigger problem than us. We've offered, by the way -- just interestingly, I think we have the greatest doctors in the world.

Donald Trump

00:12:39 - 00:12:50 (11 sec)

We've offered Iran assistance. Iran is having a tremendous problem, and we have offered Iran assistance. If they'd like it, we will help them. We'd be glad to help them.

Question

00:12:50 - 00:12:57 (7 sec)

Speaking of Iran, Mr. President, the Pentagon has determined that an Iranian-backed militia fired the rockets that killed two American soldiers in Iraq.

Donald Trump

00:12:57 - 00:12:57 (1 sec)

Question

00:12:57 - 00:12:59 (2 sec)

Should they expect a response?

Donald Trump

00:12:59 - 00:13:23 (23 sec)

I'd rather not say. But let's just put it this way: You will see. Okay? I can’t say. I was working on that last night also. They sent a lot of rockets now. It hasn't been fully determined it was Iran, as you know. It was a rebel group. But most likely, it looked like it could be backed by Iran. And we'll see what the response is.

Question

00:13:23 - 00:13:29 (6 sec)

Mr. President, would you like to see the Prime Minister return to the White House next year? He's trying to form a government at home. Would you like to see him back as Prime Minister?

Donald Trump

00:13:29 - 00:13:47 (18 sec)

Well, he's a friend. I always want him to return because he's a friend. We've been doing this now for quite a while. We started off both -- both new to the job. And, yes, I would always like to see him. I know they have other people that I know and I get along with very well. Look, we get along with the country, but this is a very special guy.

Leo Varadkar

00:13:47 - 00:13:50 (3 sec)

We’d like to see you back in Ireland again for a longer visit, I hope, next time.

Donald Trump

00:13:50 - 00:13:51 (2 sec)

Well, we’ll be -- we’ll get there.

Question

00:13:51 - 00:13:55 (3 sec)

Would you like to see Mr. President reelected in November?

Leo Varadkar

00:13:55 - 00:14:02 (7 sec)

Oh, that’s, of course, a matter for the American people, but President Trump and any American President is always welcome in Ireland.

Question

00:14:02 - 00:14:13 (11 sec)

Mr. President, there’s a report that a press aide to Bolsonaro -- Brazil’s Bolsonaro -- may have the coronavirus. Are you aware of that? Because you were in contact with that person over the weekend.

Donald Trump

00:14:13 - 00:14:33 (20 sec)

Yeah, I did hear something about that. We had dinner together in Florida in -- at Mar-a-Lago, with the entire delegation. I don't know if the press aide was there. If he was there, he was there. But we did -- we did nothing very unusual. We sat next to each other for a period of time. Had a great conversation.

Donald Trump

00:14:33 - 00:14:41 (7 sec)

He's doing a terrific job in Brazil. And we'll find out what happens. I guess they're being tested right now, right?

Question

00:14:41 - 00:14:44 (3 sec)

Well, that’s what I’m asking you. I'm asking you what update you can provide.

Donald Trump

00:14:44 - 00:14:47 (2 sec)

I’m -- let's put it this way: I'm not concerned.

Question

00:14:47 - 00:15:09 (22 sec)

Mr. President, yesterday we heard from an emergency room physician in Houston who had a patient who was showing symptoms of something; tested negative for the flu. This physician wanted to test this person for coronavirus and got caught in what this doctor described as an “infinite loop of stupid” trying to get through to the public health agencies in Texas, trying to get permission for this person to be tested.

Question

00:15:09 - 00:15:10 (1 sec)

Is there something you could do as the President to try to --

Donald Trump

00:15:10 - 00:15:11 (1 sec)

Question

00:15:11 - 00:15:13 (2 sec)

-- cut through those bottlenecks?

Donald Trump

00:15:13 - 00:15:28 (15 sec)

Yeah, I was watching. They have a million tests out now. They're going to have -- over the next few days, they're going to have 4 million tests out. And, frankly, the testing has been going very smooth. If you go to the right agency, if you go to the right area, you get the test.

Question

00:15:28 - 00:15:29 (1 sec)

This person did go to the right --

Donald Trump

00:15:29 - 00:15:37 (8 sec)

Now, with that being said, as you know, millions are being produced. This is a brand-new thing that just happened. But millions are being produced.

Question

00:15:37 - 00:15:38 (1 sec)

But this person did --

Donald Trump

00:15:38 - 00:15:53 (16 sec)

If you go back and look at the swine flu and what happened with the swine flu, you'll see how many people died and how actually nothing was done for such a long period of time, as people were dying all over the place. We're doing it the opposite. We're very much ahead of everything.

Question

00:15:53 - 00:15:59 (6 sec)

This person did contact the correct authorities, but they were closed for the day. Then he was on hold for an hour, simply trying to get a test.

Donald Trump

00:15:59 - 00:16:18 (19 sec)

Well, you’re talking about one case. I mean, I can certainly look into it, John. It's one case. I've heard also it goes very well. I watched Scott Gottlieb today, who's -- was with us and I respect him a lot. I like him and I respect him. And he was talking about how we have so many different -- and in some cases, they’re in California where we have too many.

Donald Trump

00:16:18 - 00:16:27 (9 sec)

And then in other cases, the distribution could be a little bit better for certain areas. But we've done a good job on testing. And it was very interesting. You might ask Scott about it actually.

Question

00:16:27 - 00:16:33 (5 sec)

You’ve broken with tradition today, President Trump. You're not going to Speaker Pelosi’s annual lunch. Can you tell us why?

Donald Trump

00:16:33 - 00:16:36 (3 sec)

No, I won’t be going. No, I have other things to do. I'm very busy.

Question

00:16:36 - 00:16:42 (7 sec)

You placed the restrictions on for 30 days on Europe. Is it possible you'll need to extend it?

Donald Trump

00:16:42 - 00:16:54 (11 sec)

Sure. It's possible. And it's possible I could also say that we could do it early. We could end it early. But I thought it was an important thing to do because of what's happening over there.

Question

00:16:54 - 00:16:59 (5 sec)

On the rallies, is that -- you know, what you said now, does that mean that's it? No more rallies for the foreseeable future until it’s passed?

Donald Trump

00:16:59 - 00:17:07 (8 sec)

Well, I think the Democrats won't be having rallies, but nobody showed up to their rallies anyway. So what difference does it make?

Question

00:17:07 - 00:17:09 (2 sec)

But what about you, sir?

Donald Trump

00:17:09 - 00:17:26 (17 sec)

I'll be -- my rallies are very big. They’re very big rallies. And we'll be making a decision at the appropriate time. I mean, the next one scheduled is for the 25th, and that's in Tampa. But we'll have to see whether or not we do it. No, I'm not going to do it if I think it's going to be negative at all.

Donald Trump

00:17:26 - 00:17:47 (21 sec)

If people are -- if we haven't made that turn yet. We'll make the turn. The question is when, and the question is how many people will die. And I don't want people dying. That's what I'm all about. I made a very tough decision last night and a very tough decision a long time ago with respect to China. I don't want people dying, and that's why I made these decisions.

Donald Trump

00:17:47 - 00:18:07 (20 sec)

And whether it affects the stock market or not, very important, but it's not important compared to life and death. So I had to make that decision. And, frankly, the people that are professionals praised the decision. And it's something I had to do. And I think you'll see the end result is very good because of it. But it will take a period of time.

Donald Trump

00:18:07 - 00:18:34 (27 sec)

No, on the rallies, we’ll make that decision. But at this moment, we don't have -- I was going to Las Vegas. I was going out to Nevada, as I said. I was going to Colorado where we have Cory Gardner running. And he's doing a great job, by the way. He's done a fantastic job. But we've postponed that. I think we're going to have Cory coming in here maybe on Friday.

Donald Trump

00:18:34 - 00:18:48 (15 sec)

We're going to do our event from the White House. But we have a lot of things that we're moving around because of what's happening and because I want to be here. This is the nerve center. I want to be right here. I don’t want to be flying around in airplanes all over the place. I want to be right here.

Question

00:18:48 - 00:18:53 (4 sec)

Mr. President, clearly you’re not being advised to avoid small groups like this, but is --

Donald Trump

00:18:53 - 00:18:58 (5 sec)

No, I’m not. Well, actually people said, you know, “You’re dealing with people that maybe you don’t want to deal with.”

Question

00:18:58 - 00:18:59 (1 sec)

But I’m wondering --

Donald Trump

00:18:59 - 00:19:01 (2 sec)

I said, “You’re right about that.” [Laughter]

Question

00:19:01 - 00:19:06 (5 sec)

I’m wondering, has the White House Medical Office of the Secret Service counseled you against straying too far from the White House?

Donald Trump

00:19:06 - 00:19:24 (17 sec)

They have not, but it's common sense. You know, a lot of it is -- and what I say is: Use common sense, like washing your hands and, you know, certain things. Keep a little bit of distance away. That's why the sporting events are a little bit tough because you have people sitting in small seats right next to each other.

Donald Trump

00:19:24 - 00:19:41 (17 sec)

So it's a little bit tough. What happened with the NBA is pretty incredible, but you look over in Europe, and you see their big soccer matches were canceled. And it's pretty amazing when you when you think of what happened and how fast this spread to the world. It was one country, then it was four countries, then it was nine.

Donald Trump

00:19:41 - 00:19:56 (15 sec)

I'm reading this list every week. Then it was 13, then it was 22. And now, I guess, it's over 100 countries. So it’s a -- it’s an amazing thing how fast this one spread. This is -- this is a very fast spreader.

Question

00:19:56 - 00:20:00 (4 sec)

Any more thoughts about the Tokyo Olympics?

Donald Trump

00:20:00 - 00:20:18 (18 sec)

No, I just wish the Prime Minister -- he’s a great friend of mine, Prime Minister Abe. And I wish him luck. They did such a perfect job. The venues are incredible. He was proudly showing me pictures of what they’d done the last time I was with him. This is before this came up. And I said, “What a job.” And they built it very well.

Donald Trump

00:20:18 - 00:20:40 (22 sec)

They built it on budget, right on -- even under budget. And they’re beautiful facilities. I don’t know. I mean, it’s very possible -- it’s very possible that for the Olympics maybe -- I just can't see having no people there -- in other words, not allowing people. Maybe -- and this is just my idea -- maybe they postpone it for a year.

Donald Trump

00:20:40 - 00:20:48 (9 sec)

Maybe they do that, if that’s possible. Maybe they -- maybe that’s not possible. I guess it’s never happened with the Olympics. Although I think there was interruption for wars.

Question

00:20:48 - 00:20:49 (1 sec)

They’ve been canceled, a few.

Donald Trump

00:20:49 - 00:21:05 (16 sec)

Right. It was canceled or interruption. But I would say maybe they postpone it for a year. It’s a shame because, really, I’m -- you know, I used to be in the real estate business as you probably heard. They built some -- and I built beautiful buildings, and they built some really beautiful buildings.

Question

00:21:05 - 00:21:07 (2 sec)

Would you make that recommendation to your friend, Shinzo Abe?

Donald Trump

00:21:07 - 00:21:19 (12 sec)

No, no. They’re very smart. They’re going to make their own. But, you know, I like that better than I like having empty stadiums all over the place. I think if you cancel it, make it a year later, that’s a better alternative than doing it with no crowd.

Question

00:21:19 - 00:21:23 (4 sec)

Mr. President, are you okay with shaking hands with foreign prime ministers when they visit?

Donald Trump

00:21:23 - 00:21:30 (7 sec)

Well, we didn’t shake hands today. And we looked at each other, we said, “What are we going to do?” You know, it’s sort of a weird feeling. [Laughter]

Leo Varadkar

00:21:30 - 00:21:30 (1 sec)

I think we went for this. [Places hands together]

Donald Trump

00:21:30 - 00:21:48 (18 sec)

And we said at the same time -- we did this. [Places hands together] You know, I just got back from India, and I didn’t shake any hands there. And it was very easy because they go like this. [Takes slight bow] And Japan goes like this. [Takes slight bow] They were ahead of the curve, okay? Now, we looked at each other and we said -- and we also had a lot of press staring at us, right?

Donald Trump

00:21:48 - 00:22:11 (23 sec)

We’re saying, “Are we supposed to shake hands?” And when his group of very smart representatives came in, who I know, likewise we didn’t. It’s a very strange feeling. You know, I was never a big hand shaker, as you probably heard. But once you become a politician, shaking hands is very normal. And it’s a very strange feeling when people that you know and like, they walk up and say, “Hi.” And they’re just like this.

Donald Trump

00:22:11 - 00:22:15 (4 sec)

We were saying it’s a little bit -- it’s a little bit, you know, different.

Leo Varadkar

00:22:15 - 00:22:22 (7 sec)

It feels -- it almost -- it almost feels -- feels impersonal. It feels like you’re being rude, but we just can't afford to think like that for the next few weeks. And --

Question

00:22:22 - 00:22:32 (10 sec)

Mr. President, could you talk about the trickle-through effect of everything that we’re seeing here? It’s like when you cancel an NBA season, you’re losing all of the revenue for the teams, the vendors.

Donald Trump

00:22:32 - 00:22:34 (2 sec)

Oh, sure. It has -- no, it has --

Question

00:22:34 - 00:22:35 (1 sec)

I mean, it’s that way all through the entire economy.

Donald Trump

00:22:35 - 00:22:51 (15 sec)

Yeah, it has an obvious effect. The only thing worse can be that you lose thousands and thousands of people more than you would’ve lost if you did it the way we’re doing it. So it certainly has an impact. And again, we’re very much working with the states because, you know, the states are a smaller form of government.

Donald Trump

00:22:51 - 00:23:12 (21 sec)

They can control individual arenas and individual things better. And it’s different for different areas. Some areas have no problem whatsoever in our country and others do. So we’re working with the governors of the various states, and it’s -- I think it’s working very well. I think the relationship has been very good with California and some others that in particular have been hit.

Question

00:23:12 - 00:23:18 (7 sec)

It looks like you’ll be facing Joe Biden now in the presidential run-off. Are you happy that he is favored?

Donald Trump

00:23:18 - 00:23:41 (23 sec)

Yeah, I’m happy. I -- whoever it is, I hope they make their choice soon. I thought it was going to be -- everybody thought it was going to be Bernie. And I’ve said, Elizabeth Warren, if she waited for -- you know, she waited that extra three days, four days, and Super Tuesday was a disaster -- he would’ve won every one of those states or almost -- I think almost every one of those states -- Maine, Massachusetts, Texas.

Donald Trump

00:23:41 - 00:23:59 (18 sec)

You take a look at the states that were very close, and many of her -- I would say most of her -- I would almost say all of her -- but many of her votes would’ve gone to him. So had she left prior to Super Tuesday, with just a few days, he would right now been declared virtually the winner. It would’ve been over.

Donald Trump

00:23:59 - 00:24:20 (21 sec)

But now we have Joe, and I’m very happy to run against Joe. You know, one of the reasons I ran for President is because of Joe and the job they did. So it’s one of the reasons. So in way, it’s -- in a way, it’s -- you know, it’s maybe the way it should be. But it looks to me like it would be Biden would win.

Question

00:24:20 - 00:24:26 (7 sec)

Are you considering travel restrictions within the United States, such as to Washington State or California?

Donald Trump

00:24:26 - 00:24:45 (18 sec)

We haven’t discussed that yet. Is it a possibility? Yes. If somebody gets a little bit out of control, if an area gets too hot. You see what they’re doing in New Rochelle, which is -- which is good, frankly. It’s the right thing. But they’re not -- it’s not enforced. It’s not very strong. But people know they’re -- they’re being watched.

Donald Trump

00:24:45 - 00:24:46 (1 sec)

New Rochelle. That’s a hotspot.

Question

00:24:46 - 00:24:49 (3 sec)

Just a separate topic. You spoke to the Saudi Crown Prince the other day about --

Donald Trump

00:24:49 - 00:24:50 (0 sec)

Question

00:24:50 - 00:24:52 (2 sec)

-- what did you tell him about the oil market?

Donald Trump

00:24:52 - 00:25:11 (19 sec)

Well, I asked him what’s going on. And they’re having a dispute with Russia. This is something that drove oil prices down. And one thing I can tell you is oil prices are at a point now that I would’ve dreamed about because the gasoline prices are going to be coming way down. They’ll be coming way down.

Donald Trump

00:25:11 - 00:25:27 (17 sec)

So with gasoline prices coming down, that’s like a tax cut. Frankly, that’s like a big tax cut, not a little tax cut for the consumer. So there’s something about that that I like. Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you.