In post-Obama America, the idea that we should not look to the federal government to solve our every need is about as foreign as the coronavirus itself, even though that was the very basis this country was founded on.

Yet, that’s precisely what U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams is suggesting in the face of the virus outbreak, local communities working together to solve the problem.

Appearing on Fox News’ “Justice with Judge Jeanine,” Adams was in agreement that social distancing and mitigation is part of the cure, as host Jeanine Pirro referenced an earlier remark by the surgeon general.

“But one of the things that you said today which I thought was fascinating was you talked to people about leaning in and talked about prioritizing the health and safety, and no more bickering, no more finger-pointing. Just hit the reset button,” Pirro said. “I was cheering you on because, honestly, I think the finger-pointing that’s been going on against this administration when we’re dealing with something new, something we never dealt with before, something we are not actually built to deal with — you came out and said enough, let’s just do it.”

“There was a wonderful tweet I saw earlier where Ted Cruz retweeted AOC’s tweet,” Adams replied. “And folks are starting to come together.”

The reference to AOC being Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., who told people to stop crowding public places like bars and restaurants.

Sen. Ted Crux, R-Texas, responded to her tweet to say that was “good advice.”

Good advice — not just for NYC, but everywhere. If you can stay home, stay home. And wash your hands. https://t.co/WOcTclI7Ki — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 14, 2020

“We are at a critical inflection point in this country, where we need to flatten the curve,” Adams explained. “We have a choice — do we want to look more like South Korea with a lower mortality rate, or do we want to look more like Italy?”

“And if we want to look more like South Korea, at the end of this, then we need everyone to understand we are not going to solve this problem from Washington, D.C. — we are not going to solve it from CDC in Atlanta. It will be solved at the community level and solved by people coming together.”

South Korea reportedly has 8,162 confirmed cases of coronavirus, with 75 deaths. On the other hand, Italy, which has the oldest population in Europe, has 21,157 cases and a death toll of 1,441. These stats provided by WorldOMeter.com.

“I want people to use their energy, particularly in these next few critical weeks, to really push the information out to people that they can use to protect themselves,” the surgeon general added. “You’re not helpless, America. You can wash your hands. You can social distance and stay home. We need to lean into protecting our most vulnerable, people with chronic and severe medical conditions, especially the elderly because we know they are most at risk.”

Adams reminded young people they do not face as great a risk, but their cooperation goes a long way toward protecting more vulnerable members of their own families.

Pirro noted that with a population of over 300 million people, the outbreak may get worse before it gets better, prompting Adams to point out an important thing about testing.

“If you have respiratory symptoms — if you’re coughing, if you’ve got a fever — you probably have an infectious disease of some kind,” Adams said. “And to be honest, it’s more likely to be the flu than the coronavirus. But either way you shouldn’t be around people. We’re still going to say go home, stay away from other people so you don’t get them sick.”