A day after President Trump claimed that he had “total” authority to reopen the American economy himself — a position that was widely challenged by legal scholars, governors and other elected officials from both parties — the President said on Tuesday that he would work with the states.

“I will be speaking to all 50 governors very shortly, and I will then be authorising each individual governor of each individual state to implement a reopening,” Trump said, granting the governors an authority most contended they already possessed.

Trump added that the reopenings would be “at a time and in a manner as most appropriate” for each state.

“The day will be very close,” he said, holding out the possibility that some states without large outbreaks could reopen before May 1.

Backing off an earlier, combative stance, the President said he would not pressure any governor to reopen before they were comfortable with that decision. But “they know it is time to open,” he added.

His remarks came a day after groups of governors on the East and West Coasts announced that they planned to work together in regional groups to decide when and how to reopen business.

In an extraordinary White House briefing on Monday evening, Trump had claimed that “numerous provisions” in the Constitution, which he did not name, gave him the authority to override the states if they wanted to remain closed.

Legal experts, and numerous governors, said Presidents had no such power.