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‘You’re supposed to be the President’ – Trump and Cuomo fight on Twitter about coronavirus response
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo briefing on updates on spread of covid-19 in New York State at NYPA White Plains Office.Lev Radin | Pacific Press | Getty ImagesPresident Donald Trump and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo traded insults on Twitter on Monday, ramping up each of their attacks about the other’s efforts to combat…
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo briefing on updates on spread of covid-19 in New York State at NYPA White Plains Office.
Lev Radin | Pacific Press | Getty Images
President Donald Trump and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo traded insults on Twitter on Monday, ramping up each of their attacks about the other's efforts to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Cuomo, a Democrat, drew first blood at the top of a phone conference with reporters Monday morning, when he said that the federal government has been “behind from day one of this crisis.” The government's response to the deadly virus has been “inexcusable,” Cuomo said.
Cuomo made his remarks before he announced that he and Govs. Phil Murphy of New Jersey and Ned Lamont of Connecticut had agreed to enforce the closing of certain businesses and limit public gatherings to fewer than 50 people in each of their states.
“States, frankly, don't have the capacity or the power to make up for the federal government,” Cuomo said, citing “a lack of federal direction and nationwide standards.”
Trump, later that afternoon, responded on social media following a “very good tele-conference with Nation's Governors.”
“Cuomo of New York has to ‘do more,'” Trump said. It was not clear whom the president appeared to be quoting in the tweet. He later issued another version of the tweet that corrected a typo.
During the video conference Monday morning, Trump reportedly suggested that the governors work on their own to try to obtain medical equipment that is increasingly needed for people diagnosed with the coronavirus.
“Respirators, ventilators, all of the equipment – try getting it yourselves,” Trump told the state leaders, The New York Times reported, citing a recording of the conference call.
“We will be backing you, but try getting it yourselves,” Trump added, according to the Times. “Point of sales, much better, much more direct if you can get it yourself.”
Shortly after the president sent his tweet, Cuomo hit back: “I have to do more? No — YOU have to do something! You're supposed to be the President.”
It's not the first time the two leaders have banged heads amid the nationwide efforts to rein in the spread of the coronavirus. There are now more than 3,800 cases of COVID-19 and 69 deaths in the U.S. alone, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Earlier in March, Trump lashed out at the New York governor after Cuomo complained in a television interview about the “mixed messages” coming from the Trump administration.
“There are no mixed messages, only political weaponization by people like you and your brother, Fredo!” Trump tweeted, referencing a comment made toward CNN broadcaster Chris Cuomo, the governor's brother, in a viral video.
Cuomo had been filmed in a heated exchange with a man he accused of derisively calling him “Fredo” — a character from the classic mob film “The Godfather” and a term that Chris Cuomo said was a slur against Italians. Trump has since described the CNN anchor as Fredo on numerous occasions.
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