President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet Meeting in the East Room of the White House, Tuesday, 19 May 2020, in Washington
The US President told reporters at a cabinet meeting that the high number of cases in the US – far higher than any other country – is a “badge of honour”, because it means the US is testing the most.
Trump told reporters: “You know when you say that we lead in cases, that’s because we have more testing than anybody else.”
He said he looks at the number “in a certain respect, as being a good thing because it means our testing is much better.”
The US has 1,527,895 cases. The country with the next-highest number of cases is Russia, with 299,941.
Trump added: “So I view it as a badge of honour. Really, it’s a badge of honour. It’s a great tribute to the testing and all of the work that a lot of professionals have done.”
The US also has the highest number of deaths worldwide, with 91,921. The next worst official death toll, in the UK, is 35,422, according to Johns Hopkins University figures.
The US testing rates are high, but not the highest worldwide.
Its total tests per 1,000 people are the fourth-highest worldwide, behind Denmark, Italy and New Zealand.
