Rep. Don Young (R-AK), who on March 13 told a group of seniors that fears of the “beer virus” have been overblown by the media, on Thursday delivered a very different message, the Anchorage Daily News reports.

Said Young: “Weeks ago I did not fully grasp the severity of this crisis, but clearly, we are in the midst of an urgent public health emergency… This pandemic is dangerous and is especially threatening our senior citizens, of which I am one.”

Like other recent surveys, a new Fox News poll finds President Trump’s approval rating ticking up to 48% to 51%.

However, here’s a hint at whether voters will blame Trump for the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic:  “By a 53% to 34% margin, more believe a quicker response from the federal government could have slowed the spread of coronavirus in the U.S. than say it is so contagious that nothing could have prevented it spreading the way it has.  Some 30% of Republicans join 73% of Democrats in saying the government could have made a difference had it acted faster.”

Associated Press: “Scientists are reluctant to predict exactly when restrictions could be safely loosened, but based on what they’ve observed in China — the first country struck by the new virus — some relief could come approximately six to eight weeks after lockdowns are implemented. That is based on the assumption that cases could peak two or three weeks after lockdowns begin, and gradually decline for the next two or three weeks.”

“While we may yearn for a clear timeline for when life will return to normal, scientists say that isn’t exactly the right question. Routines won’t resume exactly as they were for several months, or longer – but that doesn’t mean we’ll all be stuck in total lockdowns until then.”

Speaking with Sean Hannity on Fox News, President Trump again minimized the impact of the global coronavirus pandemic, casting doubt on the need for tens of thousands of ventilators for hospitals responding to the crisis, Politico reports.

Said Trump: “I have a feeling that a lot of the numbers that are being said in some areas are just bigger than they’re going to be. I don’t believe you need 40,000 or 30,000 ventilators. You go into major hospitals sometimes, and they’ll have two ventilators. And now all of a sudden they’re saying, ‘Can we order 30,000 ventilators?’”

“The White House had been preparing on Wednesday to announce amid an escalating pandemic that a joint venture between General Motors and Ventec Life Systems would begin producing as many as 80,000 desperately needed ventilators when word suddenly came down that the announcement was off,” the New York Times reports.

“The decision to cancel the announcement, according to government officials, came after the Federal Emergency Management Agency said it needed more time to assess whether the estimated cost was prohibitive — more than $1 billion.”