New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose disastrous policy forcing nursing homes to accept coronavirus patients cost thousands of lives, claimed that President Donald Trump “caused the COVID-19 outbreak in New York” by not announcing a European travel ban sooner.
“Donald Trump caused the COVID outbreak in New York,” Cuomo said during a press conference on Tuesday. “That is a fact. It’s a fact that he admitted, and the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] admitted, and [Dr. Anthony] Fauci admitted.”
The Trump administration should have banned travel to and from Europe sooner, Cuomo said, but “they missed it.”
Instead, Trump was wasting time labeling the coronavirus the “Chinese virus,” Cuomo alleged, calling Trump’s CDC, National Institutes of Health, and Department of Homeland Security “incompetent.”
“The virus killed many more Americans than anything you were worried about on the southern border,” he said.
“This nation loses more people per day to COVID than any nation on the globe,” he continued. “… You know who did that? Donald Trump’s incompetence. And now, they won’t provide federal funding to help repair the damage from the ambush they created.”
Cuomo has argued that the federal government needs to provide additional funding to New York City and New York State to deal with the economic aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.
Trump, however, has threatened to withhold additional funding, since Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio refuse to crack down on the violent rioting that is still taking place in the city.
Cuomo’s criticism of Trump is rich considering that it was his policies that cost actual lives in New York.
His state has experienced more coronavirus-related deaths in nursing homes than any other state because he forced senior citizens into homes with infected patients.
But he has refused to take responsibility for the policy, and has denied that his administration undercounted the total number of nursing home deaths, despite multiple reports to the contrary.
Instead, Cuomo has been busy promoting his upcoming book on the coronavirus crisis, which has drawn criticism from New York Republicans and Democrats alike.
“Don’t be publishing a damn book right now. Take responsibility for what is happening,” said Democratic state Sen. Gustavo Rivera.
Democratic Assemblyman Richard Gottfried called Cuomo’s refusal to answer questions about his nursing home policy “ridiculous.”
“When you ask an important question and their answer is patently ridiculous, it’s clear something is really wrong here,” Gottfried said.
