New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said Tuesday that President Trump “caused the COVID[-19] outbreak in New York” by not announcing a European travel ban sooner.
The New York governor criticized Trump and the federal government for not providing funding to New York City and New York state governments to deal with the aftermath from the coronavirus pandemic during a press briefing Tuesday. And he alleged the administration, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), caused the pandemic in his state.
“Donald Trump caused the COVID outbreak in New York,” Cuomo said. “That is a fact. It’s a fact that he admitted, and the CDC admitted, and Fauci admitted.”
Cuomo slammed Trump for calling the virus the “Chinese virus” and not declaring the European travel ban in time, saying, “They missed it.” The governor also labeled Trump’s CDC, National Institutes of Health and Department of Homeland Security as “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.”
“You know who did that? Donald Trump’s incompetence,” he added. “And now, they won’t provide federal funding to help repair the damage from the ambush they created.”
New York state experienced a surge in confirmed coronavirus cases starting in mid-March, resulting in thousands of deaths. Since the beginning of the pandemic, New York state has confirmed 440,021 positive cases and 25,361 fatalities, while the city has documented 231,824 cases and 19,090 confirmed deaths.
White House spokesperson Judd Deere said in a statement that Cuomo “seems paranoid.”
“Every time New York and New York City has needed something, President Trump has delivered,” he said. “The only people trying to harm New York City are the liberal politicians and their failed big government policies.”
Trump instituted travel restrictions on those coming from China in February and those coming from Europe in mid-March. The first COVID-19 case was confirmed in New York state on March 1.
Trump has repeatedly hit Cuomo for the governor’s criticisms of the president’s coronavirus response. His campaign released video clips showing the governor praising the Trump administration for its response after Cuomo spoke at the Democratic National Convention.