‘He panicked’: Biden blames Trump for 200,000 US coronavirus deaths in explosive presidential debate

‘The president has no plan’ on Covid-19, former vice president says

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden blasted Donald Trump for his response to the coronavirus pandemic, saying he “panicked” and has never provided a “plan” to help Americans emerge from the crisis.

Mr Biden hit Mr Trump for saying this summer “it is what it is” regarding the American death toll from Covid-19, which has surpassed 200,000 this month.

“It is what it is because you are who you are. That's why it is. The president has no plan,” Mr Biden said, pointing at his debate opponent.

Mr Trump repeatedly cut in during Mr Biden’s response with his signature one-word rebuttal: “Wrong.”

The former vice president was quick to point out that while the US accounts for less than 5 per cent of the world population, 20 per cent of the people worldwide who have died from Covid-19 are Americans.

The debate quickly lurched into a back-and-forth on the necessity of wearing masks, with Mr Trump taunting Mr Biden for wearing a mask “all the time,” while he only wears one “when I need to.”

And while Mr Trump boasted that thousands of people have attended his political rallies in recent months, Mr Biden said suggested that was a black mark on the president’s record, putting people’s lives at risk.

“He's been totally irresponsible the way in which he's handled the social distancing and people wearing masks, basically encouraging them not to. He's a fool on this,” Mr Biden said.