Trump claims “total authority” to override governors, force states to reopen

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President Donald Trump today falsely claimed he has "total" authority to override governors and force states to reopen their economies despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Trump faced numerous questions from reporters about his views on federal authority hours after he tweeted that the president, not governors, get to make the "decision to open up the states."

"When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total and that's the way it's got to be. It's total, and the governors know that," Trump said in response to one of the questions at a press briefing.

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