Former Vice President Joe Biden slammed President Trump over claims the White House “muzzled” a top health official from speaking openly about the dangers of the coronavirus.
“Look, this is about knowing where it is, who has it, and how to deal with it. And I see — I see no preparedness other than a political talking points, putting someone in charge who is not a scientist and not — and muzzling the scientist,” the Democratic presidential candidate said on ABC’s This Week on Sunday. “This is not a Democratic hoax. This is incompetence on the part of the president of the United States at the expense of the country and the world.”
Both Trump and Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, denied he was “muzzled” by the administration during a White House news conference on Saturday. Fauci called it a “misunderstanding.”
“We were set up to go on some shows, and when the vice president took over, we said, ‘Let’s regroup and figure out how we’re going to be communicating.’ So I had to just stand down on a couple of shows and resubmit for clearance. And when I resubmitted for clearance, I got cleared,” Fauci said.
Trump, who called the coronavirus the Democrats’ latest “hoax,” has been criticized for not reacting to the coronavirus more quickly and for his decision to appoint Vice President Mike Pence to take the lead on the U.S. response effort.
Last week, the New York Times reported that Fauci met with Pence, who said the spread of the virus was “very serious.” According to the report, Fauci told aides Pence had instructed him not to say anything else without clearance.
Democratic Rep. John Garamendi said Fauci canceled several Sunday show appearances after Pence’s office “took over.”
