President Trump said he is “absolutely” willing to discuss with former Vice President Joe Biden how the federal government ought to respond to the coronavirus pandemic.
During a Wednesday White House press briefing on the coronavirus, President Trump extended an opportunity of bipartisanship to Biden, saying he would “love” to speak with him about mitigating the spread of COVID-19.
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“Oh, absolutely. I’d love to speak to him, sure,” Trump said. “I always found him to be a nice guy. I don’t know him very well, frankly. But I think he’s probably a nice guy. No, if he’d like to call, I’d absolutely take his call.”
Presidential aide Kellyanne Conway blasted Biden on Wednesday morning for criticizing the president during the coronavirus pandemic. “Why doesn’t Vice President Biden call the White House today and offer some support?” Conway said. “I have to tell you, we’re not talking about politics here at the White House at all. We’re talking about ventilators and vaccines, not Biden and Bernie. There’s really no time for that, but it’s very disappointing when you see the criticism.”
Following Conway’s remarks, the Biden campaign said it would be willing to discuss the government’s response to COVID-19. “Vice President Biden has been extending his advice for months, and he did so again on the air last night,” Biden’s deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield told the Washington Examiner.
“As he has said repeatedly, Donald Trump is not accountable for coronavirus itself, but he is accountable for the federal government’s slow and chaotic response to this outbreak.”
Last week, Congress approved and Trump signed a $2.2 trillion spending bill, the third relief package designed to alleviate economic concerns of small businesses, large corporations, and individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic. It allocates $500 billion in loans to large companies, $350 billion in forgivable loans, and provides $1,200 in direct cash payments to many U.S. citizens, among other items.
Before the historic relief package was passed last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said lawmakers must begin drafting a fourth relief package to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that the bill that was making its way through Congress was insufficient to address the needs of state and local governments, workers, and other entities affected by the spread of the virus.
On Tuesday, the president advocated for a $2 trillion addition to congressional economic relief bills designed to help workers and businesses during the pandemic, saying he hopes to increase employment through federal programs.
Since COVID-19 was first reported in the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has precipitously fallen, plummeting from over 29,000 to approximately 20,900.
More than 911,000 people have tested positive for the coronavirus globally. Of those, at least 45,000 have died from it, and more than 191,600 have recovered. The U.S. has seen at least 206,000 confirmed cases, with nearly 8,400 reported recoveries.
