China travel ‘ban’ was wasn’t Trump’s idea, despite his claims otherwise, says Bob Woodward in new book

Journalist does not offer supporting data for claims in awkward ‘Today Show’ interview

Despite saying for months it was his unilateral decision to "ban" people from China entering the United States due to coronavirus concerns, journalist Bob Woodward contends it was an idea pushed by some of his top Cabinet officials.

In his new book about the Trump presidency, title "Rage," Mr Woodward, citing sources, says the plan was first brought to the president by Health and Human Services Secretary Alexander Azar, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chief Robert Redfield and Anthony Fauci, the top federal infectious disease expert.

"It is very different and it's essential to the understanding" of how the China entry restriction was conceived and implemented, Mr Woodward told NBC's "Today Show" on Monday.

But the longtime journalist's reported account is in stark contrast to the president's boast that it was his call, and his along.

"'Don't close off China. Don't ban China,'" Mr Trump said of his aides' advice in a July GrayTV interview. "And I did it anyway, I sort of didn't listen to my experts and I banned China."

Mr Woodward went so far as to contend the China restriction drove travelers to instead enter the United States via Europe, claiming those people drove the New York area's coronavirus infection spike.

"It's not that President Trump banned travel, people coming from China to the United States. He restricted it," Mr Woodward said. "And as we now know, there were some problems and lots of people from China, instead of coming to the United States went to Europe and then came into John F. Kennedy Airport in New York."

"And that's why there was such a firestorm of a virus in New York at that time,' Mr Woodward speculated without offering any supporting data in a Trumpian-like statement.

A White House spokesman defended the president in a statement.“Just as he acted early on to cut off travel from the source of the virus, President Trump was advised by his health and infectious disease experts that he should cut off travel from Europe – an action he took decisively without delay to save lives while Democrats and the media criticized him and the global health community still did not fully comprehend the level of transmission or spread," spokesman Judd Deere said.