Coronavirus Outbreak: Biden Criticizes Trump For Wanting To Reopen US Economy By Easter

Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden hit back at President Donald Trump’s remarks regarding the opening of the U.S. economy by Easter Sunday, saying that Trump should “stop talking” and start listening to health experts in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.

Hours after President Trump stated that he hoped for the U.S. markets to be opened by April 12, former vice president Biden told MSNBC that he would love to open up the government as soon as possible.

"I would like to open up the government tomorrow if it were possible," Biden told MSNBC. "Let’s be realistic. This curve is going up and up and up because we did not act when we should have acted.”

Joe Biden on how he would handle the COVID-19 pandemic: "I'd be protecting our docs, our nurses, and first responders. Because if we lose them, we are in real, real trouble. We should be making those masks, we should be moving on those ventilators." https://t.co/MfR5dnvDwa
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) March 25, 2020

Biden then asked Trump to pay heed to scientists such as Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and focus on the health of the nation’s citizens.

"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. We haven’t even flattened the curve. It’s frustrating to hear this president speak. He should stop talking. Let the experts speak,” said Biden in response to Trump’s wishes to reopening the economy.

Fauci had earlier issued numerous warnings pertaining to the need for social distancing and the seriousness of the virus' outbreak.

According to John Hopkins University, COVID-19, which originated in China, has infected more than 52,100 lives in the U.S. and has forced numerous businesses to close down.

Biden further added saying that the COVID-19 crisis is beyond politics and that the economic costs can be later on evaluated by the U.S.

"This is about how we spare this nation from a potential disaster," he said.

On Tuesday, during a Fox News town hall, President Trump said that closing down the economy could potentially “destroy” the U.S. and that he would love to re-open the economy by Easter.

At a White House briefing later that day, Fauci said that the timeline for lifting restrictions on mass gatherings and businesses was "very flexible," the Hill reported. He further added saying that lifting restrictions in an area like New York, which has emerged as the epicenter of the pandemic in the U.S. doesn't not make sense at all.