Posted on 03/24/2020 5:02:42 AM PDT by yardboyd
(Watchvideo at link)
Former Vice President Joe Biden on Monday accused President Trump of dithering in the early days of the coronavirus, saying that a “failure of planning and preparation” by the White House has worsened the health and economic crises the nation faces.
Speaking from a makeshift studio at his home in Delaware, Biden made his first public remarks about the coronavirus in nearly a week, addressing concerns from some on the left that he has been ceding the spotlight to Trump.
The former vice president accused the Trump administration of ignoring early warning signs about the pandemic and of downplaying the disease at critical points when the virus was primarily concentrated in China.
“For too long, the warning signs were ignored,” Biden said. “For too long, the administration said the threats were under control, contained, or like the flu. The president said no one saw this coming. That’s just not accurate. Our intelligence officials were warning about the coronavirus threat in January. Just based on public information I had, I warned the threat was getting worse way back on January 27.”
“My point is not simply that the president was wrong,” Biden continued. “My point is that the mindset that was slow to recognize the problem in the first place, to treat it with a seriousness it deserved, is still too much a part of how the president is addressing the problem.”
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar declared the coronavirus a public health emergency on Jan. 31, 10 days after the first case appeared in the U.S.
The president initially said that the spread was “under control” in the U.S. and that the warmer spring weather might help to curb the spread before launching a task force headed by Vice President Pence on Feb. 26 to lead the government’s response.
A shortage of test kits has been among the most glaring shortfalls of the government response, and Biden pointed to South Korea, where testing has been free and easy and the country appears to be on the right trajectory despite identifying its first case on the same day the U.S. did.
“We had none of that, so we’re left with only the extreme social distancing measure in place,” Biden said. “That’s a failure of planning and preparation by the White House.”
The Trump campaign swung back, saying that Biden should “answer for his own failed record on public health.” The Trump campaign accused Biden of mishandling the H1N1 swine flu pandemic from 2009, saying that at the time the administration failed to stockpile respirators.
The campaign also pointed to a 2009 White House briefing in which then-White House spokesman Robert Gibbs walked back remarks Biden made that the travel industry described as “fear mongering.”
“Biden has already proven he has nothing new to add to the public discourse around the coronavirus, nor can he explain why he sided with the Chinese in opposing President Trump's life-saving China travel restrictions," said Trump campaign spokesman Andrew Clark. "In his rush to politicize the pandemic, Biden is displaying his poor judgement when it comes to protecting America’s public health.”
The former vice president on Monday also laid out four points of action he wants to see the government take.
Biden said Trump must authorize the Defense Production Act to order companies to make critical health care supplies, such face masks.
“Trump keeps saying he’s a wartime president, well start to act like one,” Biden said.
Trump has been resistant to ordering companies to make certain items, saying the companies know what they do best and are reacting to market pressures to produce the goods that need to be made.
Biden also said the president must employ the armed forces and National Guard to expand hospital capacity; that Trump must “end the infighting and bickering” between political officials and health experts in his administration; and that he must “set the right priorities for the economic response” by directing cash to average workers, rather than big companies and their executives.
A massive spending bill stalled in the Senate on Sunday night amid allegations from Democrats that it was a “slush fund” for large corporations that could be used for executive bonuses and stock buybacks.
“As of last night, President Trump and Mitch McConnell were offering a plan to let big corporations off the hook,” Biden said. “They proposed a $500 billion slush fund for corporations with almost no conditions.”
Republicans are furious over the allegations, noting that the spending package includes direct payments to low-earning Americans and that Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) had praised the package as a bipartisan achievement as recently as Saturday.
Biden’s address comes as some Democrats have expressed frustration that he’s allowing Trump to take center stage in a time of crisis.
The president’s approval rating has been rising over the past week, even as many in Washington have criticized his handling of the government’s response.
Biden has been taken off the campaign trail due to orders from officials that people stay indoors. He had not spoken in front of cameras since last Tuesday, as his team outfitted his home with a television studio so that he could address the public from there.
Biden says he expects to make regular on-camera appearances going forward, although the first one was not seamless.
The former vice president appeared to run into an issue with his script at one point. He waved at a staffer to move along before abandoning one of his talking points.
Still, the address should quell some concerns that he’s been absent at a critical moment.
“I hope today and in the days ahead the president will give us the unvarnished truth," Biden said. "I hope he lets the medical experts and FEMA leaders take center stage, to hear from them directly. And I hope we hear less talk and see more evidence of fast action."
Biden is a victim of the elder abuse DNC presidential campaign.The VP pick will be “President”. (Mirror mirror on the wall , who is the fairest of all...... the Dem hags?)
Again the roll out a senile old man who is simply a parrot for DNC disunity talking points because President Trump is doing a fantastic job.
America is underwhelmed.
Will someone please change Slow Joe’s catheter bag?
Be quiet, you brain dead clown.
Sloppy Joe should take his son along on his campaign stops. That way when he challenges an old-timer asking an embarrassing question ‘Hunter’ can take the guy out and beat up on him.
He is a nothing more than a parody.
He is SLOW.
He is DETERIORATING.
He is CREEPY.
He is ANGRY.
I hope he stays alive till the convention and election day.
Amazing to hear Democrats who are and have been in Government for decades criticize Trump, who’s been in govt for 3.5 yrs, for lack of planning.
What a loser this guy.
This from the man who couldn’t get out of a wet paper bag.
Munching carpets causes the particulates to become enlarged in her air passages. Stand far back when she coughs otherwise one might get hit with a large fur ball.
Sure thing Plugs...
Don’t worry about Scranton Joe Biden. Once elected he’ll have Obama’s advisors running the show.
We all know what a great job Joe and Obama did handling H1N1.
You beat me to it. Yeah they never reorder the emergency supply needed.
And how many years did they have to reorder the masks before Trump became president? Obviously not enough.
MAGA
Trump had a plan.
Too bad DC is filled with disloyal people.
Joe is lucky if he can remember his own name..
Facts can be a bitch to liberals:
Dec. 10: Wei Guixian, one of the earliest known coronavirus patients, starts feeling ill.
Dec. 16: Patient admitted to Wuhan Central Hospital with infection in both lungs but resistant to anti-flu drugs. Staff later learned he worked at a wildlife market connected to the outbreak.
Jan. 2: Chinese researchers map the new coronavirus’ complete genetic information. This information is not made public until Jan. 9.
Jan. 7: The CDC established a coronavirus incident management system to better share and respond to information about the virus.
Jan. 14: WHO announces Chinese authorities have seen “no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus.”
Jan. 17: The CDC began implementing public health entry screening at the three U.S. airports that received the most travelers from Wuhan— San Francisco, New York JFK, and Los Angeles.
Jan. 20: Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Health’s infectious disease institute, announced efforts to develop a vaccine.
Jan 20, 2020 - Democrats begin impeachment trial against President Trump.
Jan. 21: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirms the first coronavirus case in the United States.
Jan. 21: The CDC activated its emergency operations center to provide support to the coronavirus response.
January 30, 2020 – The United States reports its first confirmed case of person-to-person transmission of the Wuhan coronavirus. On the same day, the WHO determines that the outbreak constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
January 31, 2020 – Mr. Trump declared a public health emergency, and suspended entry into the U.S. for foreign nationals at risk of transmitting the virus or who have traveled in China in the last 14 days. He is labeled racist and xenophobic.
Feb. 4: Mr. Trump vowed in his State of the Union address to “take all necessary steps” to protect Americans from the coronavirus.
February 5, 2020 - President Trump acquitted in impeachment trial.
February 11, 2020 – The WHO names the coronavirus Covid-19.
Feb. 11: The Department of Health and Human Services expanded a partnership with Janssen Research & Development to “expedite the development” of a coronavirus vaccine.
Feb. 24: The administration sent a letter to Congress requesting at least $2.5 billion to help combat the spread of the coronavirus.
February 25, 2020 – The NIH announces that a clinical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the antiviral drug remdesivir in adults diagnosed with coronavirus has started at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha. The first participant is an American who was evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked in Japan.
February 26, 2020 – CDC officials say that a California patient being treated for novel coronavirus is the first US case of unknown origin. The patient, who didn’t have any relevant travel history nor exposure to another known patient, is the first possible US case of “community spread.”
February 26, 2020 – President Trump places Vice President Mike Pence in charge of the US government response to the novel coronavirus.
February 29, 2020 – A state health official announces that a patient infected with the novel coronavirus in Washington state has died, marking the first death due to the virus in the United States.
Feb. 29: The administration announced a level 4 travel advisory to areas of Italy and South Korea, barred all travel to Iran, and barred the entry of foreign citizens who visited Iran in the last 14 days.
March 3: The CDC lifted federal restrictions on coronavirus testing to allow any American to be tested “subject to doctor’s orders.”
March 4, 2020 – The CDC formally removes earlier restrictions that limited coronavirus testing of the general public to people in the hospital, unless they had close contact with confirmed coronavirus cases. According to the CDC, clinicians should now “use their judgment to determine if a patient has signs and symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and whether the patient should be tested.”
March 11, 2020 – In an Oval Office address, Trump announces that he is restricting travel from Europe to the United States for 30 days in an attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus.
March 13, 2020 – Trump declares a national emergency to free up $50 billion in federal resources to combat coronavirus. Mr. Trump announced public-private partnerships to open drive-through testing sites, a pause on interest payments on federal student loans, and an order to the Department of Energy to purchase oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
March 18, 2020 – Trump signs into law a coronavirus relief package that includes provisions for free testing for Covid-19 and paid emergency leave, and announced a temporary closure of the U.S.-Canada border to non-essential traffic and plans to invoke the Defense Production Act to increase the number of necessary supplies needed to combat coronavirus.
He looked like an old fool who had trouble reading his teleprompter. Look for them to start taping them and editing with no live performances.
Joe’s comments are as weighty as the retired guys cussing in the corner at the breakfast diner.
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