WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump on Tuesday accused Democrats of wanting his administration to fail in its response to the coronavirus pandemic, fanning U.S. partisan debate without providing evidence to support his assertion.
U.S. President Donald Trump Trump talks to reporters prior to boarding Air Force One as he departs Washington for travel to Arizona at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., May 5, 2020. REUTERS/Tom Brenner
Before heading out to visit an Arizona mask-making factory, Trump was asked by a White House reporter why he would allow top health official Anthony Fauci testify to a committee of the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate but not the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives.
“Because the House is a set up. The House is a bunch of Trump haters,” the Republican president answered. “They, frankly, want our situation to be unsuccessful, which means death, which means death, and our situation is going to be very successful.”
Trump, who is seeking re-election in November, also said that Democrats “want us to fail so they can win an election, which they’re not going to win.”
Arizona, a battleground state that could decide the election’s outcome, is one of dozens of U.S. states partially lifting its shutdown of social and business life imposed to stem the coronavirus pandemic.
Hundreds of protesters gathered in Phoenix, Arizona, two weeks ago calling for Republican Governor Doug Ducey to ease restrictions in the state. Many of the protesters waved American flags and wore hats and shirts in support of Trump.
On Monday, the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) forecast that COVID-19 deaths in the United States could reach about 135,000 by early August as social-