America calls off major meeting of world leaders in Las Vegas as Trump continues to downplay coronavirus risks

President Donald Trump attempted to downplay the severity of the COVID-19 coronavirus epidemic during a campaign rally in South Carolina on Friday.

But as the commander-in-chief was referring to the epidemic as a "hoax," his own administration was reportedly cancelling a major global meeting.

"The Trump administration has called off a major summit of Asian leaders next month in Las Vegas amid growing alarm over the coronavirus," NBC News reported Friday evening, citing "two U.S. officials."

The meeting was for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on March 14.

"But planning for the trip was abruptly halted on Friday, just as President Donald Trump said he was considering expanding his travel ban to cover countries that had a disproportionately high number of coronavirus cases," NBC reported.