Best Selling author Bill Bennett. (Screenshot)

Discussing the effects of the coronavirus on the nation, best selling author and former Education Secretary Bill Bennett stressed that the average American has a "2/10ths of one percent chance" of catching the virus and a "98% chance of recovery."

He added that certain leaders have "scared the hell out" of people and the disease "models have been disastrous."

On Fox News Live, Apr. 13, host Brian Kilmeade asked Bennett, "Bill, what are we missing about this virus? We see the numbers, 22,00 dead, how many cases, but you took a step back and what did you find?”

“Yes, let’s take a step back," said Bennett. "The estimates now from the University of Washington, which is the model that everyone’s been going on, even though it’s been wrong most of the time by a lot, now they say 60,000 people will die. 61,000 is what we lost to the flu in 2017-2018. The flu."

"Now, we all regret the loss of 61,000 people, if that’s what it turns out to be," he said. "I’m going to tell you I think it’s going to be less, and salute all those who are working on the front lines on this, the hospital workers, the nurses and doctors, etcetera, and the generosity of the American people."

(Screenshot, FNC)

“But if you look at those numbers and see the comparable," said Bennett, "we’re going to have fewer fatalities from this than from the flu."

"For this we scared the hell out of the American people," he added. "We lost 17 million jobs. We put a major dent in the economy. We closed down the schools. You heard Dr. Oz say we probably didn’t have to do that. We shut down the churches, and so on."

“This was not and is not a pandemic," said Bennett. "But we do have panic and pandemonium as a result of the hype of this. And it’s really unfortunate. Look at the facts."

“If you’re an average American, you have 2/10ths of 1 percent chance that you’ll get it -- 2/10ths," he said. "And if you get it, you have a 98% chance of recovery. These things are very rarely heard out there."

Dr. Anthony Fauci and President Donald Trump. (Getty Images)

He continued, "Remember 9/11? We talked about ‘Let’s Roll.’ In this one, there’s been too much let’s roll up in a ball, let’s hide under the bed. This is not the way America works. Let’s get back to work."

As for criticism of President Trump by the media, Bennett said, “The New York Times trying to blast the president for not acting in January and putting everyone on notice. At the end of February, Dr. Fauci, who’s the reigning king of scientists here, said there’s no reason for anyone here to change their way of doing business – at the end of February."

"He is the responsible party," said Bennett. "His instincts, by the way, the president’s, have been more correct than anybody else’s. The models have been disastrous. But they have frightened the children and chased the public under their beds. This is a shame."

“Let’s open up the country," Bennett added. "Let’s do it smart. … Let’s get the country moving. There’s been real damage caused by this that’s far beyond, frankly, can imagine because we haven’t done the count, the full count, on both sides of the ledger.”