Last night on CNN, Chuck Schumer claimed that Trump has no one in charge of producing and distributing medical equipment and suggested that Trump needed to appoint a senior military official as czar to make things happen more efficiently:
THE HILL – Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday evening called on President Trump to appoint a senior military official to serve as a czar in charge of producing and distributing medical equipment, arguing that Trump’s coronavirus task force is not up to the job.
“There’s a dramatic shortage of all the needed supplies or most of them, whether it’s masks, whether it’s [Personal Protective Equipment] PPE … whether it’s ventilators. And we have no one really in charge,” Schumer said in an interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett. “We have this awful spectacle of governors bidding against one another.”
This morning Trump responded, pointing out he already has an Admiral in charge of distribution and essentially told Cryin’ Chuck Schumer to stop complaining…
Somebody please explain to Cryin’ Chuck Schumer that we do have a military man in charge of distributing goods, a very talented Admiral, in fact. New York has gotten far more than any other State, including hospitals & a hospital ship, but no matter what, always complaining…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2020
…It wouldn’t matter if you got ten times what was needed, it would never be good enough. Unlike other states, New York unfortunately got off to a late start. You should have pushed harder. Stop complaining & find out where all of these supplies are going. Cuomo working hard!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2020
Trump continues reminding Schumer, and everyone else for that matter, that they are shipping many of these supplies directly to hospitals…
Massive amounts of medical supplies, even hospitals and medical centers, are being delivered directly to states and hospitals by the Federal Government. Some have insatiable appetites & are never satisfied (politics?). Remember, we are a backup for them. The complainers should…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2020
….have been stocked up and ready long before this crisis hit. Other states are thrilled with the job we have done. Sending many Ventilators today, with thousands being built. 51 large cargo planes coming in with medical supplies. Prefer sending directly to hospitals.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2020
Schumer had told CNN that “one unnamed governor even told him that he has reached out to Sweden in a desperate search to find more ventilators.” But what’s wrong with that? If states can get them from Sweden, they should! It’s not like the federal government has to be the one and only supplier of medical supplies. In fact Trump keeps telling the states that they should be buy directly and that the federal government should be a backup.