President Trump orders flags at half-staff to honor coronavirus victims

by: WHTM Staff

Posted: May 22, 2020 / 11:14 AM EDT / Updated: May 22, 2020 / 12:26 PM EDT

The American flag flies at half-staff at the Capitol in honor of Sen. John McCain of Arizona who died Saturday of brain cancer, in Washington, Monday, Aug. 27, 2018. McCain will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda on Friday. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WHTM) — President Trump has ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff in honor of coronavirus victims.

He made the announcement on Twitter Thursday, saying the flags on all federal buildings and national monuments will be lowered over the next three days.

I will be lowering the flags on all Federal Buildings and National Monuments to half-staff over the next three days in memory of the Americans we have lost to the CoronaVirus….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 21, 2020

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer made the request for flags to be lowered when the coronavirus death toll reaches 100,000 in the U.S.

According to Johns Hopkins University, that number is a little more than 94,700.

Trump also said on Monday, the flags will be at half-staff in honor of the men and women in our Military who have made the Ultimate Sacrifice for our Nation.