Pence dodges when pressed by Fox’s Chris Wallace on Trump ‘LIBERATE’ tweets

Vice President Pence did not directly address tweets by President Trump calling to “LIBERATE” states that have seen protests against their governors’ social distancing measures when pressed by Fox News’s Chris Wallace on Sunday, instead saying that the demonstrations show Americans’ eagerness to get back to work.

“What you see, I think, among millions of Americans who have been embracing those social distancing measures and making the sacrifices is they want their governors to find a way to responsibly and safely reopen their state economies,” Pence said on “Fox News Sunday.”

Wallace, however, noted that “in a number of these cases, these protesters are saying they don’t want to wait” and that “in many cases, they’re protesting your own guidelines,” adding that while some demonstrators are protesting from their cars, others, such as those in Texas, stood close together in defiance of social distancing measures.

“The American people know that no one in America wants to reopen this country more than President Donald Trump,” Pence responded. “I can assure you he’s going to continue to encourage governors to find ways to safely and responsibly let Americans go back to work.”

Trump defended the “LIBERATE” tweets in a Saturday briefing, telling reporters, “I just think some of the governors have gotten carried away.”

Wallace on Sunday also asked Pence about coronavirus testing capacity, noting that experts have said a capacity for 500,000 tests a day will be necessary to begin lifting some restrictions.

“We believe the testing we have today across the country, once we activate all the labs that can do coronavirus testing, is sufficient for any state in America to move into phase one” of the White House’s reopening guidelines, Pence responded.

“We’re going to continue to fully partner with governors around the country and health officials in increasing and scaling the amount of testing, and we have every confidence that we can have a sufficient amount of testing to be able to reopen America,” he added.