President Donald Trump is slamming “partisan investigations” following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif) recent announcement.
Pelosi announced on Thursday that she will launch a House select committee to oversee coronavirus response, as IJR previously reported.
“The panel will root out waste, fraud, and abuse. It will protect against price-gauging, profiteering, and political favoritism,” Pelosi said.
She also noted that the committee “will be bipartisan and have an expert staff.”
Trump appeared to criticize Pelosi for wanting to create the committee during a White House coronavirus briefing.
“In recent weeks as the virus has spread and economic hardship has followed, we have seen Americans unite with incredible selflessness and compassion,” Trump said. “I want to remind everyone here in our nation’s capital, especially in Congress, that this is not the time for politics, endless partisan investigations.”
Watch his comments below (starting around 32:00):
Trump suggested that it is just another “witch hunt.”
“Here we go again. They’ve already done extraordinary damage to our country in recent years. … It’s witch hunt after witch hunt after witch hunt. And in the end, the people doing the witch hunt have been losing. They’ve been losing by a lot and it’s not anytime for witch hunts.”
Pelosi’s announcement comes after Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) indicated he wanted to create a commission to review the nation’s response to the coronavirus crisis, as IJR previously reported.
Trump turned his focus to the coronavirus itself.
“It’s time to get this enemy defeated. Conducting these partisan investigations in the middle of a pandemic is a really big waste of vital resources, time, attention,” Trump said. “We want to fight for American lives, not waste time and build up my poll numbers because that’s all they’re doing because everyone knows it’s ridiculous.”
Trump’s approval rating has reportedly risen during the coronavirus pandemic, making it the highest of his presidency thus far.