On Tuesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the coronavirus the “Trump virus” blaming the mounting pandemic on Trump and his administration’s failed response to the virus.
Trump revived White House’s coronavirus task force press briefings on Tuesday. During the briefing, he urged Americans to wear masks and stated that the pandemic was most likely going to “get worse” before it gets better. He repeatedly referred to the virus as the “China virus.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci was absent from the briefing and later told the media that he was not invited to the event.
During an interview with CNN, Pelosi suggested that the president’s efforts are “too little, too late.”
“I think with the president’s comments today, he has recognized the mistakes that he has made by now embracing mask-wearing and the recognition that this is not a hoax, it is a pandemic that has gotten worse before it gets better because of his inaction and, in fact, clearly, it is the Trump virus,” Pelosi told CNN.
CNN host Wolf Blitzer then asked, “Well, what do you mean when you say the ‘Trump virus?”
“The Trump virus,” Pelosi said again. “If he had said months ago ‘Let’s wear a mask, let’s socially-distance’ instead of having rallies or political whatever they were, then more people would have followed his lead. He’s the president of the United States, instead of being a bad example, making it like a manhood thing not to wear a mask.”
Pelosi then added, “A briefing on the coronavirus should be about science and that is something that the president has ignored. It should be about governance and now he’s finally embracing saying ‘OK, it’s OK to wear a mask.’ So, I think a good deal of what we have suffered is clearly the Trump virus.”
Blitzer then asked, “so. what you’re saying is that thousands of Americans have died because of what the president has done or not done. Is that what you’re saying?”
“Yeah. Yes, that’s what I’m saying,” Pelosi replied.
