President Donald Trump, who has often pushed back against mask guidance from health officials, says he would wear one “in a tight situation with people”. Mr Trump – who has avoided appearing in public with a mask – also maintained masks do not need to become mandatory to curb Covid-19’s spread.

His remarks to Fox News come a day after Republicans in Congress called on Mr Trump to wear masks as an example. A number of states are seeing surges in virus cases and deaths in recent days. The US now has over 2.6 million confirmed Covid-19 infections and more than 127,000 deaths. Speaking to Fox Business Network on Wednesday, Mr Trump said: “I’m all for masks.”

When asked whether he would wear one, the president said “if I were in a tight situation with people I would, absolutely”, adding that people have seen him wearing one before. Mr Trump said he would have “no problem” with wearing a mask publicly and that he “sort of liked” how he looked with one on, likening himself to the Lone Ranger.(BBC)…[+]