Trump: Pelosi is Trying to Create Coronavirus 'Panic' for 'Political Advantage'
President slams Democrat House speaker over handling of potential health crisis
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President Donald Trump has blasted Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), accusing the Democrat leader of trying to create "panic" over the coronavirus to give herself a "political advantage."
Speaking during his coronavirus press conference Wednesday night, President Trump was responding to Speaker Pelosi’s criticisms of him.
Earlier on Wednesday, Pelosi accused the Trump administration of responding “too late” to halt the possible spread of China’s deadly coronavirus in the United States.
“This is shameful,” Pelosi told reporters on Capitol Hill when asked about the administration sending a $2.5 billion supplemental budget request to combat the illness.
“He puts forth a proposal now that is meager, anemic in terms of addressing this.
"Ebola, we did $5 billion. And now they’re trying to take the Ebola money and spend it here.”
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During Trump's press conference, a reporter asked, “What is your response to Speaker Pelosi, who said earlier today you don’t know what you’re talking about about the coronavirus?
"I’m also wondering if you’d want to address critics who say you can’t be trusted about what your administration is saying?”
Trump said, “I think Speaker Pelosi is incompetent.
"She lost the Congress once. I think she’s going to lose it again.
"She lifted my poll numbers up 10 points. I never thought i would see that so quickly and so easily.
"I’m leading everybody. We’re doing great. I don’t want to do it that way.
"It’s almost unfair if you think about it.
"But I think she’s incompetent and I think she’s not thinking about the country.
"Instead of making a statement like that where I’ve been beating her routinely at everything, instead of making a statement like that, she should be saying we have to work together because we have a big problem potentially, and maybe it’s going to be a very little problem.
"I hope that it’s going to be a very little problem, but we have to work together.
"Instead, she wants to do the same thing with Crying Chuck Schumer.
"He goes out and says, 'the president only asks for two and a half billion dollars. He should have $8.5 billion.'
"This is the first time I’ve ever been told we should take more.
"Usually, it’s we have to take less. We should be working together.
"He shouldn’t be making statements like that because it’s so bad for the country.”
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"Nancy Pelosi, she should go back to her district, cleaned it up,” Trump continued.
"I’m just saying, we should all be working together," he added.
"She’s trying to create a panic, and there’s no reason to panic because we have done so good.
"All they’re trying to do is get a political advantage.
"This isn’t about political advantage. We’re all trying to do the right thing.
"They shouldn’t be saying, ‘This is terrible. President Trump isn’t asking for enough money.’
"How stupid a thing to say?
"If they want to give us more money, well that’s OK, we’ll take more money … but they shouldn’t demean the people on the stage that are the finest in the world.
"They’re not demeaning me.
"They’re demeaning the greatest health care professionals in the world," he concluded.
Reporter: "What is your response to Speaker Pelosi who said you don't know what you're talking about with the coronavirus?"@realDonaldTrump: "I think Speaker Pelosi is incompetent... she is trying to create a panic." pic.twitter.com/i9MbCBqRvw
— The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) February 27, 2020
During the press conference, President Trump announced that Vice President Mike Pence will lead the US response to the coronavirus.
