President Trump slammed Democrats for casting doubts about his response to the coronavirus threat after Michael Bloomberg questioned his leadership capabilities.
The late-night Twitter barrage from the White House began with the president chiding Bloomberg for his first two debate performances in the Democratic primary contest.
“Word is that Mini Mike Bloomberg performed so poorly in the two debates, that he is thinking about dropping out of the Democrat Primary,” Trump said late Thursday. “The fact is, he was not true to himself, and the public was able to quickly figure him out. Not a good experience for Mini Mike!”
Bloomberg, a billionaire who is a former mayor of New York City, responded within the hour, chastising the president for mocking him on social media rather than focusing on the coronavirus and the stock market sell-off.
“Really, this? A global pandemic is bearing down and the stock market is plunging — our problems are large, Donald, and you are incapable of confronting them,” Bloomberg said.
Really, this? A global pandemic is bearing down and the stock market is plunging — our problems are large, Donald, and you are incapable of confronting them. https://t.co/5gpMkBOTJc
— Mike Bloomberg (@MikeBloomberg) February 28, 2020
Although Trump did not directly mention Bloomberg in his subsequent tweets, he returned to Twitter to condemn Democrats for not supporting his leadership as his administration responds to the coronavirus outbreak that has spread to six continents.
“So, the Coronavirus, which started in China and spread to various countries throughout the world, but very slowly in the U.S. because President Trump closed our border, and ended flights, VERY EARLY, is now being blamed, by the Do Nothing Democrats, to be the fault of ‘Trump,’” the president tweeted.
“The Do Nothing Democrats were busy wasting time on the Immigration Hoax, & anything else they could do to make the Republican Party look bad, while I was busy calling early BORDER & FLIGHT closings, putting us way ahead in our battle with Coronavirus,” he added. “Dems called it VERY wrong!”
So, the Coronavirus, which started in China and spread to various countries throughout the world, but very slowly in the U.S. because President Trump closed our border, and ended flights, VERY EARLY, is now being blamed, by the Do Nothing Democrats, to be the fault of “Trump”.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 28, 2020
The Do Nothing Democrats were busy wasting time on the Immigration Hoax, & anything else they could do to make the Republican Party look bad, while I was busy calling early BORDER & FLIGHT closings, putting us way ahead in our battle with Coronavirus. Dems called it VERY wrong!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 28, 2020
The coronavirus, which causes a SARs-like illness named COVID-19, has infected more than 82,000 people and killed more than 2,300 people, mostly in mainland China were it emerged in December. Trump barred flights of nonresidents from China into the U.S. in late January when he declared the disease a public health emergency.
Earlier this week, Trump announced Vice President Mike Pence would be leading the administration’s response to the virus. So far, there have been a few dozen coronavirus cases identified in the United States, and no deaths have been reported.