SHOT/CHASER: Pence Falsely Claims Trump Never “Belittled The Threat of Coronavirus”
SHOT: On CNN just now, Pence claimed Trump never “belittled” the threat of coronavirus.
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MIKE PENCE: “I don’t believe the president has ever belittled the threat of the coronavirus…” [Twitter, Kaitlan Collins, 4/1/20]
CHASER: Trump repeatedly downplayed the threat of coronavirus instead of preparing our nation. This led to the current shortage of tests, masks for healthcare workers, and hospital beds and ventilators for sick patients.
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March 10, 2020: Trump Said Of Coronavirus: “And We’re Prepared, And We’re Doing A Great Job With It. And It Will Go Away. Just Stay Calm. It Will Go Away.” [White House Press Conference, Washington, DC, 3/10/20]
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March 2, 2020: Trump Baselessly Claimed The WHO’S Estimate That Coronavirus Had A 3.4% Mortality Rate Was “Really A False Number.” “I think the 3.4 percent [mortality] is really a false number. Now, and this is just my hunch, and — but based on a lot of conversations with a lot of people that do this. Because a lot of people will have this and it’s very mild. They’ll get better very rapidly. They don’t even see a doctor. They don’t even call a doctor. You never hear about those people.” [Fox News, Sean Hannity, 3/2/20]
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February 28, 2020: Trump On Coronavirus: “It’s Going To Disappear. One Day — It’s Like A Miracle — It Will Disappear.” [Donald Trump, Meeting with African American Leaders, Washington, DC, 2/28/20]
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February 25, 2020: Trump Said Coronavirus Is “Very Well Under Control In Our Country.” [Donald Trump, Press Conference, New Delhi, India, 2/25/20]
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Trump: “We’re Down To Probably About 10 [Cases]. Most Of The People Are Outside Of Danger Right Now. “We’re down to probably about 10 [cases]. Most of the people are outside of danger right now. We’ve had a very strict line on the people we’re taking and the areas from which we’ll take, and I did it very early.” [Donald Trump, Press Conference, New Delhi, India, 2/25/20]
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February 10, 2020: Trump On Coronavirus: “We’re In Very Good Shape. We Have 11 Cases And Most Of Them Are Getting Better Very Rapidly.” [Fox Business, 2/10/20]
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February 10, 2020: Trump On Coronavirus: “Looks Like By April, You Know, In Theory, When It Gets A Little Warmer, It Miraculously Goes Away.” [Donald Trump, Rally, Manchester, NH, 2/10/20]
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February 7, 2020: Trump Said The Coronavirus Would “Hopefully Become Weaker And Then Gone” As “The Weather Starts To Warm.” [@realDonaldTrump, 2/7/20]
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January 22, 2020: Trump Said Of Coronavirus: “We Have It Totally Under Control. It’s One Person Coming In From China.” [“Squawk Box,” CNBC, 1/22/10]