Trump says restrictions will lead to thousands of deaths, cites no evidence

U.S. President Donald Trump talks arrives to participate in a Fox News "virtual town hall" event with members of the coronavirus task force in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, U.S., March 24, 2020. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that coronavirus restrictions, which have shut down businesses in many places across the country, could themselves lead to suicides or other fatalities.

"You're going to lose more people by putting a country into a massive recession or depression. You're going to lose people. You're going to have suicides by the thousands," the president said on Fox News Channel.