Perhaps one of the biggest points of contention for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his campaign heading into the 2020 general election has been President Donald Trump ‘s handling of the novel coronavirus outbreak and ensuing COVID-19 crisis. On Wednesday, the former Vice President posted a campaign video hitting Trump for past statements made concerning the pandemic that has since proved to be inaccurate.
Biden posted the video on Twitter and, unsurprisingly, it has generated significant response from people on both sides of the political spectrum. The nearly 90-second clip provides a point/counterpoint look at Trump’s early commentary regarding COVID-19 and what it means for the U.S. in particular. Throughout the video, common questions regarding the virus, its coverage in the media and the American response are displayed, followed by archival footage of Trump’s statements from press briefings, after which Biden offers contrasting answers.
Biden captioned the tweet with an admonishment of Trump’s coronavirus response, saying “The words of a president matter — and Donald Trump has used his to downplay COVID-19, pass blame onto others, and mislead the American people. I will do the opposite.”
The words of a president matter — and Donald Trump has used his to downplay COVID-19, pass blame onto others, and mislead the American people. I will do the opposite. pic.twitter.com/6ZViv3tdW7
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) April 29, 2020
Regarding coverage of the pandemic, a March 19 clip of Trump attacking the media response is shown, after which Biden pontificated on the importance of the free press. Next, a February 27 clip of Trump stating coronavirus will miraculously disappear is shown, to which Biden responded that the virus won’t simply disappear, but emphasized that action can be taken now to save lives. Later, a March 4 audio clip of the President downplaying the seriousness of COVID-19 infection and claiming that patients “don’t even see a doctor” was played. Biden then offered the counterpoint that many people, including young people, can have “severe, life-threatening complications” as a result of infection.
Biden also offered similar counterpoints to Trump’s statements regarding the federal government’s responsibility to citizens amid the pandemic, as well as whether or not the crisis has been overblown.
Throughout the pandemic, Democratic leadership, medical experts and others have criticized Trump’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak since its proliferation in the U.S. Regardless, the White House has begun to “fade out” coronavirus guidelines as individual states look to reopen economies that have stalled as a result of shelter-in-place orders and social distancing policies.
“They’ll be fading out, because now the governors are doing it,” said Trump, alluding to states that are already taking steps toward getting back to business as usual, even as much of the country remains in various states of shut-down to stem the spread of COVID-19.
