Trump doesn’t want to declare an emergency because that would make it too obvious that he has his head up his ass.

President Donald Trump is reluctant to declare an expansive emergency to combat the escalating coronavirus outbreak, fearful of stoking panic with such a dramatic step, according to three people familiar with the situation. Instead, the president is expected to sign within days a more limited designation to allow the federal government to cover small business loans, paychecks for hourly workers and delay tax bills, the White House said Wednesday. An emergency declaration would go significantly beyond that move, bringing in the Federal Emergency Management Agency and freeing up funding and resources for states struggling to contain the rapidly spreading virus.

In other words it would be vastly more useful than Trump’s feeble little handwave.

Trump’s concern at this point is that going further could hamper his narrative that the coronavirus is similar to the seasonal flu, said the three people familiar with the discussions.

Yes well that’s the important thing – Trump’s narrative. Not the survival of thousands of people, but the health of Trump’s stupid ignorant wrong “narrative” aka lie.

There’s no deadline for a decision, but one of the people familiar with the talks said the task force will not give Trump its final verdict until Jared Kushner, the president’s senior adviser and son-in-law, finishes his research and comes to a conclusion himself.

Oh good, fabulous, absolutely brilliant, the health of millions depends on the “research” of a shallow ignorant real estate hustler working for his criminal daddy-in-law.