Biden hits Trump's remarks about reopening economy within weeks: 'He should stop talking'

Former Vice President Joe BidenJoe BidenHillicon Valley: Biden calls on Facebook to change political speech rules | Dems demand hearings after Georgia election chaos | Microsoft stops selling facial recognition tech to police Trump finalizing executive order calling on police to use ‘force with compassion’ The Hill’s Campaign Report: Biden campaign goes on offensive against Facebook MORE on Tuesday denounced President TrumpDonald John TrumpSenate advances public lands bill in late-night vote Warren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases Esper orders ‘After Action Review’ of National Guard’s role in protests MORE for pushing to reopen the U.S. economy by Easter Sunday, saying that the president needs to “stop talking” and listen to health experts.

“I would like to open up the government tomorrow if it were possible,” the Democratic presidential candidate said on MSNBC just hours after Trump stated that he hoped to have the country “opened up” by April 12.

“Let’s be realistic. This curve is going up and up and up because we did not act when we should have acted.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Biden implored Trump to focus on the nation’s health and to listen to scientists such as Anthony FauciAnthony FauciUS hits 2 million coronavirus cases amid surges in some states Trump seeks to regain 2020 momentum with campaign rallies Overnight Health Care: Fauci underscores concerns about protests spreading coronavirus | COVID-19 surge in Texas sparks reopening fears | A day in the life of America’s contact tracing army MORE, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, who have issued repeated warnings about the seriousness of the coronavirus outbreak and the need for extended social distancing requirements.

The disease, which originated in China, has infected more than 52,100 people in the U.S., according to a Johns Hopkins University database, leading to mass closures of businesses and schools as state and local governments work to slow its spread.

Health experts, including Fauci, have said that social distancing requirements could be needed for weeks, though Trump this week began floating the idea of reopening businesses, saying such a move could be necessarily to avoid severely damaging the economy.

Biden panned any attempt to restart the economy that would risk further escalating the virus outbreak.

“Look, if you want to ruin the economy for a long time, let’s go ahead see this thing continue by having it burst out again,” he said. “We haven’t even flattened the curve. It’s frustrating to hear this president speak. He should stop talking. Let the experts speak.”

ADVERTISEMENT

He went on to say that the current crisis goes beyond politics and that the U.S. will be able to address economic costs later. He also cited Congress’s work to pass a massive stimulus package to provide support for workers impacted by the outbreak as a positive step. 

“This is about how we spare this nation from a potential disaster,” Biden said.

Trump said during a Fox News town hall Tuesday that closing down the economy could “destroy” the U.S. and said that he’d love to have it “raring to go by Easter.”

Speaking at a White House briefing later that day, Fauci said that the timeline for lifting restrictions on businesses and mass gatherings was “very flexible.”

He said lifting restrictions would not make sense in an area like New York City, which has emerged as the epicenter of the pandemic in the U.S., and noted that the upcoming weeks would be crucial for public health officials to understand how widespread the virus is in the country.

Click Here: camiseta boca juniors