Joe Biden Hits Donald Trump On PPE Shortages As The President Golfs

Former Vice President Joe Biden continues to levy harsh criticism at President Donald Trump for his response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On Friday, the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee hit the president on Twitter, decrying Trump’s decision to golf while frontline healthcare workers continue to deal with shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) like N-95 masks, surgical masks, and face shields.

In a fiery tweet, Biden characterized the shortage as a “national disgrace.”

“We are five months into this crisis, and our health care workers still don’t have the masks and protective equipment they need. It’s a national disgrace,” he wrote. “Mr. President, use your authority and fix the shortage of PPE before you tee off for yet another round of golf.”

Biden’s tweet was posted just as a pool report indicated that the president’s motorcade had arrived at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia at 9:52 a.m. on Friday morning, per Public Pool.

Trump has been oft criticized for golfing during the pandemic and throughout his presidency in general. As relayed previously by The Inquisitr, Trump’s mistakenly posted “white power” re-tweet reportedly remained online for several hours because the White House could not reach him while he was at a golf club.

Meanwhile, healthcare facilities around the U.S. are coping with having to combat the novel coronavirus amid a lack of PPE supplies.

On Thursday, the House Oversight Committee released a memo with new information on the Trump administration’s purported failure to lead with regard to PPE. In the memo, Representative Carolyn B. Maloney — the Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform — provided a summary of conversations held between staff members and representatives of six medical equipment distribution companies that are playing a role in the White House’s response to the pandemic. Multiple problems were cited in the memo, including supply chain issues, prohibitive pricing, and a general lack of direction from the federal government.

Maloney’s summation of the PPE problem paints a particularly unflattering picture of the president and his coronavirus response.

“Despite months of effort, there are still severe shortages of PPE and critical medical equipment, and the Trump Administration has no coherent national strategy to address these deficiencies,” she wrote. “These shortages continue even as coronavirus cases are now re-surging dangerously to record highs after the president insisted that states re-open prematurely.”

For his part, Biden has seemingly capitalized on Trump’s perceived mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as Black Lives Matter protests around the U.S. As reported by The Inquisitr, a recent Monmouth University poll showed Biden owning a double-digit lead over the president.