Sandy Rios, the American Family Association​ governmental affairs director, told radio listeners Wednesday that warnings they had received about the COVID-19 coronavirus were “greatly exaggerated” and meant to manipulate them.

New data suggests that it is likely fewer people will die from coronavirus in the United States than was originally projected. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci has credited the reduction to successful social distancing actions, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield said that original estimations had anticipated less public cooperation with the government’s effort to slow the spread of coronavirus. U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adam said he “absolutely” expects coronavirus deaths to fall short of White House estimates.

But during the Wednesday broadcast of “Sandy Rios in the Morning” on American Family Radio, Rios responded with anger that projections had been too high and that a dramatic spike in deaths anticipated for this week in New York City ​is not materializing in a catastrophic way. “It’s just not happening,” Rios said.

“I’m not saying there are no cases of COVID-19,” Rios said. “I’m saying that what we’ve been told has been greatly exaggerated​, and we have been manipulated and played.”