Written by MLWA 7 Staff
WASHINGTON - There have been texts messages circulating on social media that claim U.S. President Donald Trump will be declaring a nationwide mandatory quarantine due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. We can confirm that is FALSE.
The text messages, which are still spreading on social media, claim United States President Donald Trump will be issuing a mandatory nationwide quarantine within the next 48-72 hours under the “Stafford Act.” The text messages also encouraged people to “stock up” on items before the quarantine goes into effect and advises people to share the message with their friends and family. The text message I received said the information was shared by friends in the military.
Many of the posts on social media featured a screenshot of a text message or plain text that reads:
“Please be advised, within 48 to 72 hours the president will evoke what is called the Stafford Act. Just got off the phone with some of my military friends up in DC who just got out of a two hour briefing. The President will order a two week mandatory quarantine for the nation. Stock up on whatever you guys need to make supply of everything. Please forward to your network. Note: my military friend just sent me the above text.”
On March 15, 2020, the National Security Council (NSC) confirmed on Twitter that these “text message rumors of a national quarantine” are fake. President Trump did invoke the so-called Stafford Act. However, this law has nothing to do with mandating a quarantine but instead allows for the unlocking of federal funding for disaster relief.
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