Brett Samuels and J. Edward Moreno write in The Hill that the White House is in the early stages of winding down its coronavirus task force, Vice President Pence’s office confirmed Tuesday.
The surprise decision comes as most states are preparing to loosen restrictions meant to slow the spread of the virus, while a number of areas continue to see increases in new COVID-19 cases and deaths.
Pence’s office confirmed to The Hill that the vice president told reporters at a limited briefing that his plan is to scale back the task force’s role by Memorial Day. Pence has been leading the task force since late February.
Members are likely to return to their respective departments and manage the coronavirus response from there.
The timing seems very curious.