News Opinons Politics

Pelosi Invokes Language of Watergate, Suggesting Trump Coronavirus Response Investigation

In recent interviews, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has employed words made famous during the Watergate hearings in reference to President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus outbreak, suggesting a congressional investigation into his conduct will occur.

On Sunday, Pelosi accused Trump of not working urgently enough to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We should be taking every precaution. What the president — his denial at the beginning was deadly,” Pelosi told host Jake Tapper on CNN’s “State of the Union.”


The speaker then referenced one of the most noteworthy questions asked during the 1973 Watergate impeachment hearings against then-President Richard Nixon: “What did the president know and when did he know it?”

“I don’t know what the scientists said to him. When did this president know about this, and what did he know? What did he know and when did he know it? That’s for an after-action review,” Pelosi said.


Vance acknowledges voters ‘impatient’ on affordability, rejects ‘totally bulls— narrative’
Jan 6 defendant pardoned by Trump lands in legal trouble again
Watch: Stephen A. Smith Locks Horns With Whoopi as He Schools the Women of ‘The View’ on Why Democrats Are Losing
Nearly Half of LGBT TV Characters to Vanish Next Year as Show Cancellations Pile Up
911 call for Luigi Mangione’s arrest in McDonald’s released: ‘He looks like the CEO shooter’
ICE operation in Minneapolis nabs a dozen ‘worst of the worst’ criminal illegal aliens, including Somalis
Trump national security blueprint declares ‘era of mass migration is over,’ targets China’s rise
Priceless Video: CNN’s Jake Tapper Calls Jan 6 Pipe Bomb Suspect ‘White Man’ on Live TV – Does He Look White to You?
The Plot Thickens: DC Pipe Bomb Suspect’s George Floyd Connection Has Been Uncovered
Mandela Barnes jumps into Wisconsin governor race — but baggage from his 2022 Senate bid follows
Trump administration balances US support for Saudi Arabia and Israel
New Utah map could leave four House GOP members scrambling for three seats
Tom Stoppard, 1937-2025
CBS Continues Overhaul Under Bari Weiss, as Key Anchor Goes ‘Rogue’: Report
Young Americans Are Getting Absolutely Fed Up with the American Duopoly: Poll

See also  DOJ weighing possible new indictments for Comey and James: Reports

“But as the president fiddles, people are dying. And we just have to take every precaution,” she added.

Pelosi asked the same question Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe, wondering what and when scientists were advising Trump about COVID-19.

Republican National Committee spokeswoman Elizabeth Harrington responded to Pelosi’s interview, tweeting, “Democrats are so impeachment obsessed, Pelosi is trying to turn a virus from Wuhan into Watergate.”


Vance acknowledges voters ‘impatient’ on affordability, rejects ‘totally bulls— narrative’
Jan 6 defendant pardoned by Trump lands in legal trouble again
Watch: Stephen A. Smith Locks Horns With Whoopi as He Schools the Women of ‘The View’ on Why Democrats Are Losing
Nearly Half of LGBT TV Characters to Vanish Next Year as Show Cancellations Pile Up
911 call for Luigi Mangione’s arrest in McDonald’s released: ‘He looks like the CEO shooter’
ICE operation in Minneapolis nabs a dozen ‘worst of the worst’ criminal illegal aliens, including Somalis
Trump national security blueprint declares ‘era of mass migration is over,’ targets China’s rise
Priceless Video: CNN’s Jake Tapper Calls Jan 6 Pipe Bomb Suspect ‘White Man’ on Live TV – Does He Look White to You?
The Plot Thickens: DC Pipe Bomb Suspect’s George Floyd Connection Has Been Uncovered
Mandela Barnes jumps into Wisconsin governor race — but baggage from his 2022 Senate bid follows
Trump administration balances US support for Saudi Arabia and Israel
New Utah map could leave four House GOP members scrambling for three seats
Tom Stoppard, 1937-2025
CBS Continues Overhaul Under Bari Weiss, as Key Anchor Goes ‘Rogue’: Report
Young Americans Are Getting Absolutely Fed Up with the American Duopoly: Poll

See also  Portland drops ‘Christmas’ from tree lighting ceremony featuring ‘Free Palestine’ chant

“‘What did he know & when did he know it?’ Is she talking about Xi?” Harrington continued. “POTUS mobilized CDC, created task force, and stopped travel, while Dems wasted our time on a Ukraine witch hunt.”

On Jan. 31, Trump announced the then-controversial decision to ban flights coming out of China into the United States, making the U.S. one of the first nations to do so, according to a CNN timeline.

The move came 10 days after officials confirmed the first American case of the virus.

That same week, the president established a coronavirus task force to monitor the unfolding public health situation.

Even as the news coming out of China worsened, Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer were pushing for additional witnesses and documents to be included in Trump’s impeachment trial, which would have resulted in the proceedings continuing for weeks or perhaps months.


Vance acknowledges voters ‘impatient’ on affordability, rejects ‘totally bulls— narrative’
Jan 6 defendant pardoned by Trump lands in legal trouble again
Watch: Stephen A. Smith Locks Horns With Whoopi as He Schools the Women of ‘The View’ on Why Democrats Are Losing
Nearly Half of LGBT TV Characters to Vanish Next Year as Show Cancellations Pile Up
911 call for Luigi Mangione’s arrest in McDonald’s released: ‘He looks like the CEO shooter’
ICE operation in Minneapolis nabs a dozen ‘worst of the worst’ criminal illegal aliens, including Somalis
Trump national security blueprint declares ‘era of mass migration is over,’ targets China’s rise
Priceless Video: CNN’s Jake Tapper Calls Jan 6 Pipe Bomb Suspect ‘White Man’ on Live TV – Does He Look White to You?
The Plot Thickens: DC Pipe Bomb Suspect’s George Floyd Connection Has Been Uncovered
Mandela Barnes jumps into Wisconsin governor race — but baggage from his 2022 Senate bid follows
Trump administration balances US support for Saudi Arabia and Israel
New Utah map could leave four House GOP members scrambling for three seats
Tom Stoppard, 1937-2025
CBS Continues Overhaul Under Bari Weiss, as Key Anchor Goes ‘Rogue’: Report
Young Americans Are Getting Absolutely Fed Up with the American Duopoly: Poll

See also  Ghislaine Maxwell pushes back on full transparency for Epstein files

Following Pelosi’s Sunday CNN interview, the president called her a “sick puppy” and a “disgrace” in response to her claim his administration is costing people’s lives.

He accused her of playing a political “game.”

“It’s a sad thing,” Trump told Fox News.

“She’s a sick puppy, in my opinion. She really is. She’s got a lot of problems, and that’s a horrible thing to say especially when … I stopped some very, very infected, very, very sick people, thousands coming in from China.”

“She was playing the impeachment game, her game where she ended up looking like a fool,” he added.

By invoking the language of Watergate, Pelosi may be seeking to shift the coronavirus narrative.

Recent polling shows a majority of Americans support Trump’s handling of the outbreak.

A Gallup poll released last week found 60 percent approve of the president’s COVID-19 efforts, including 27 percent of Democrats in the survey.

Similarly, an ABC News/Washington Post poll published late last week showed Trump with 51 percent approval and 45 percent disapproval in his handling of the crisis.

Additionally, for the first time in ABC News/Washington Post polling conducted during Trump’s presidency, a majority of Americans approve of his overall job performance: 48 to 46 percent.

Story cited here.

Share this article:
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter