This past Monday, President Trump used the daily White House briefing to talk about what American businesses are doing to help during the coronavirus pandemic. Businesses, in the wake of financial turmoil, are turning efforts to provide sanitizer, masks, and other gear for the medical staff and others on the front lines.

MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell took the stand after a welcome from Trump. He said MyPilow is dedicating 75 percent of its manufacturing to producing cotton face masks, aiming to get up to 50,000 a day by end of this week. Lindell paused before continuing, saying he wanted to talk “off the cuff”.

“God gave us grace on Nov. 8, 2016, to change the course we were on,” Lindell said, referring to the day Trump was elected. “God had been taken out of our schools and lives. A nation had turned its back on God.”

“And I encourage you to use this time at home to get back in the ‘Word,’ read our Bibles and spend time with our families,” he added. He continued, saying “all the great people in this country (are) praying daily”, which is key to getting through the pandemic.

Trump was unaware Lindell would make the comments but said: “he’s a friend of mine and I do appreciate it.”

Others at Monday’s briefing included executives from tech company Honeywell, which intends to produce N95 masks in new facilities; sleepwear company Jockey International, which is donating scrubs to New York doctors; and Procter and Gamble, which will make hand sanitizer.