House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is taking aim at President Donald Trump for his initial approach to the coronavirus crisis.
“His denial at the beginning was deadly,” Pelosi said, adding, “His delaying getting equipment to where it is needed is deadly.”
Pelosi appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Jake Tapper. He opened the exchange by citing Trump’s consideration of relaxing federal guidelines.
She went on to explain the measures that need to be taken to further prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Watch her comments below:
.@SpeakerPelosi says the President downplaying the severity of #coronavirus is “deadly."
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) March 29, 2020
“As the President fiddles, people are dying. We just have to take every precaution.” #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/y8bFNbaPJy
“We have to have testing, testing, testing, that’s what we said from the start,” Pelosi said, continuing, “Before we can evaluate what the nature of it is in some of these other regions as well.”
She continued on to question what scientists are telling Trump, when he knew about the coronavirus, and what he knew about it.
Pelosi closed the exchange by providing a direct answer to Tapper’s initial question.
“As the president fiddles, people are dying. We just have to take every precaution,” Pelosi said.
Pelosi’s comments come shortly after Trump signed a $2.2 trillion coronavirus aid package into law, as IJR previously reported.
The legislation includes direct payments to families, financial aid to businesses and other industries hard hit by the coronavirus, additional aid for hospitals and health care personnel, and expanded unemployment benefits.
Trump addressed the idea of a New York lockdown, as IJR previously reported.
He issued a statement on Twitter.
“A quarantine will not be necessary,” Trump tweeted.
He reported a travel ban for New York and parts of New Jersey and Connecticut is possible.
The total number of cases in the United States has reportedly reached 125,313 with a total of 2,201 deaths. Total confirmed cases across the globe have reached 691,867.
