McEnany says it’s ‘simply nonsensical’ for every person in US to be tested for coronavirus

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McEnany: Notion everyone needs to be tested is 'nonsensical'

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany addresses COVID-19 testing during briefing.

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany on Wednesday called it “simply nonsensical” to test every person in the U.S. at this moment for coronavirus.

“Let’s dismiss a myth about tests right now,” McEnany said. “If we tested every single American in this country at this moment, we’d have to retest them an hour later and an hour after that because at any moment you could theoretically contract this virus.”

“The notion that everyone needs to be tested is just simply nonsensical,” McEnany added, saying that testing should be targeted at vulnerable populations, including those at nursing homes or meat processing plants.

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McEnany said that the U.S. has conducted 7.5 million coronavirus tests, “more than double the number of tests in any other country.”

Under the White House guidelines for reopening, two percent of a population should be tested before governors enter their reopening plan. When asked about a number of states moving forward with reopening without meeting White House guidelines, McEnany said, “we encourage governors to follow the guidelines.”

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Also on Wednesday, McEnany was pressed as to why Dr. Anthony Fauci -- a member of the administration's coronavirus taskforce -- had been authorized to testify in the Republican-controlled Senate but not the Democrat-controlled House.

“Will Dr. Fauci be questioned by Democrats in that Senate hearing?” the press secretary shot back. “The House needs to act in good faith. We don’t have time, in the middle of a pandemic, for a publicity stunt.”

Chairwoman Nita Lowey, D.-N.Y., and chief of staff Mark Meadows had a series of three phone calls to talk about the possibility of Fauci testifying before a subcommittee in the House, according to McEnany. Meadows, wanting to make “the best use he can of the task force members’ time,” asked Lowey to follow up with details of what the hearing would entail.

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“Those details were never released, instead we got a press release. That's what we call a publicity stunt,” McEnany said. “The notion he’s being blocked is just farcical.”