US President Donald Trump called Nancy Pelosi a "weak and pathetic puppet" after she criticized his administration’s response to the coronavirus outbreak in the United States in a letter sent to the Democrats on 14 April. In his post on Twitter, the president cited Fox News presenter Sean Hannity’s latest comment on Pelosi and said the speaker of the US House of Representatives was controlled by the radical left.
Crazy “Nancy Pelosi, you are a weak person. You are a poor leader. You are the reason America hates career politicians, like yourself.” @seanhannity She is totally incompetent & controlled by the Radical Left, a weak and pathetic puppet. Come back to Washington and do your job!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 16, 2020
In her letter written to her Democratic colleagues, Pelosi blamed the current economic slowdown and widespread death toll from the coronavirus on Trump’s actions.
"The truth is Donald Trump dismantled the infrastructure handed to him which was meant to plan for and overcome a pandemic, resulting in unnecessary deaths and economic disaster. We don’t have adequate tests, masks, PPE [personal protective equipment], and necessary equipment", wrote Pelosi.
The Trump administration has been previously criticized for its slow response to coronavirus, which critics say has contributed to the spread of the disease and widespread casualties. The US has the biggest number of coronavirus cases in the world (more than 670,000) and the biggest death toll from the disease, more than 34,000.
The outbreak also resulted in an economic slowdown, with the number of people filing for unemployment exceeding 16 million.
Trump has dismissed reports that his administration failed to adequately respond to the outbreak. The president lashed out at the Democrats after they blocked additional funding last week for the Payment Protection Program (PPP), aimed at helping small businesses to weather out the pandemic.
Democrats are blocking additional funding for the popular Paycheck Protection Program. They are killing American small businesses. Stop playing politics Dems! Support Refilling PPP NOW – it is out of funds!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 16, 2020
Pelosi claimed the Democrats did not approve the expansion to the PPP because it did not include a list of measures demanded by the party. Republican Senator Majority Leader Mitch McConnel said the measures would be included in the second part of the CARES Act. However, Democratic leadership said their proposals were more urgent and required immediate attention.
