President Trump blamed the “fake news” for the poor reviews of his response to the coronavirus that has killed more than 200,000 Americans and said Democratic nominee Joseph R. Biden wouldn’t “have it in his blood” to respond to such a crisis.
“The country would have been left wide open,” Mr. Trump said in the first presidential debate in Cleveland Tuesday night.
Mr. Trump was referring to criticism from Mr. Biden and others for restricting travel from China at the end of January. “It’s China’s fault, it should have never happened.”
The coronavirus has been a drag on Mr. Trump’s reelection prospects.
The U.S. contains about 4% of the world’s population but accounts for a fifth of world deaths from COVID-19, or about 200,000 out of 1 million.
Mr. Trump said other countries “don’t exactly give you a straight count,” and suggested approval of a vaccine may be held back for political reasons.
SEE ALSO: Trump defends right to fill Supreme Court seat
“We can have it a lot sooner, it’s a very political thing,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Biden, meanwhile, said the coronavirus pandemic has killed so many people because Mr. Trump is a flawed person.
“It is what it is because you are who you are,” he said, before mentioning the president’s early warnings to author Bob Woodward. “He knew all the way back in February how serious this crisis was.”
The former vice president also said Mr. Trump was too trusting of Chinese President Xi Jinping early on.
“He told us what a great job Xi was doing,” Mr. Biden said.
The former vice president told Mr. Trump to rally Congress behind a relief package, citing the economic woe from the disease.
SEE ALSO: Trump-Biden trade barbs over Obamacare in opening of presidential debate
“He sits on his golf course,” Mr. Biden said.
Mr. Trump said the economy is recovering quickly and that states need to open up because people “know what to do.”
“This guy will close down the whole country and destroy our country,” he said of Mr. Biden.
Mr. Biden responded by saying poorer people and those on the frontline of the fight have been hit the hardest, so opening the country without caution could be deadly.
“You can’t fix the economy until you fix the COVID crisis,” Mr. Biden said.
Mr. Trump said he’s already done a good job on the virus itself. He pointed to early efforts to make sure patients who needed a ventilator got one, and said his administration has learned how to protect the vulnerable.
“Far fewer people are dying. We’ve done a great job,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Trump defended his large rallies that are held without social distancing, saying he has moved most of them outside, which is considered safer, and he hasn’t seen a “negative effect” from the rallies. He also said they’re popular.
“People want to hear what I have to say,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Trump also has been lukewarm in his support for mask-wearing, even as public health experts deem them a vital tool in the fight.
“I put a mask on when I think I need it,” Mr. Trump said. “Tonight, for example, everyone’s had a test.”
Mr. Biden threw his weight behind masks, saying they would save lives, though Mr. Trump pointed to shifting advice from his own advisers, saying they said the opposite early on.
“No serious person said the opposite,” Mr. Biden said.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.