Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is accusing the Trump administration of using Americans’ misfortune — due to the coronavirus outbreak — as a campaigning tool for reelection.
During Vice President Mike Pence’s planned trip to the General Motors (GM) plant in Madison, Wisconsin, on Tuesday he will be touring the facility where ventilators are being mass-produced. Pence will also be participating in a round-table discussion.
However, Biden is accusing Pence of using the trip as an opportunity for political gain while disregarding the severity of the pandemic’s impacts on Americans. He wrote in a statement:
“This attempt to use Wisconsin as the backdrop to a political photo opportunity comes as the state is suffering a devastating loss of life to COVID-19, particularly in the African American community, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsin workers have filed for unemployment in recent weeks, and Republicans drive dangerous efforts to prematurely end social distancing efforts.”
He continued with criticism of President Donald Trump’s administration, saying, “The Trump Administration is hoping that Wisconsinites have a short memory.”
As the White House pushes for states to reopen, governors have pushed back against the administration as they have argued that testing capacity is still too limited to properly prepare for reopening.
Biden also expressed his stark disapproval of the Trump administration’s handling of the pandemic, highlighting what he believes to be the White House Coronavirus Task Force’s failures.
“The Trump Administration is currently responsible for one of the most significant failures of governance of any administration in modern history. It failed to heed warnings and adequately prepare our nation,” Biden wrote.
He continued, “It has failed to sufficiently ramp up the production of critical equipment, like ventilators, masks, and other personal protective equipment through the Defense Production Act (DPA).”
Biden’s statement follows reports about an explosive call between Pence, administration officials, and Democratic lawmakers. During the call on April 17, Pence was accused of giving vague answers when questioned about testing.
“The fundamental problem is a lack of capacity, which at this point they can’t fix. So they are explaining it away,” one Democrat said, according to Politico. “Everyone was livid.”
Despite the ongoing outcry and sheer criticism regarding coronavirus testing, the Trump administration has insisted adequate testing is available.