Pelosi: Trump 'Engaged in Distractions' amid 'Total Failure' on Testing

Speaking on "PBS News Hour," Pelosi asserted that Trump has engaged in a series of "distractions" and "misrepresentations" in order to deflect responsibility for the handling of the virus's spread in the US.

"What is impeding the federal government from addressing the COVID-19 crisis is the president’s denial, delay in all of this, and that has been deadly," Pelosi said. "We are insisting on the truth and the president is engaged in a series of misrepresentations to the American people and that is the impediment."

She went on to argue that Trump has refused to recognize science and the role of government in the nation's response to the pandemic, noting that his recent decision to impose limits on US immigration was another distraction to avoid blame.

"(Trump is) always engaged in distractions like immigration, distractions like supporting people in the street," she said. "They're all distractions away from the fact, the known fact, that he's a total failure when it comes to testing", The Hill reported.

Trump announced this week that he would suspend immigration into the US amid the coronavirus pandemic. On Tuesday, he outlined more details about the executive order, saying it would initially last for 60 days and apply to those seeking permanent residence.

The move comes as the US has reported more than 823,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, and roughly 44,800 deaths stemming from it as of Tuesday evening, according to a Johns Hopkins University database.

Trump has faced continued scrutiny over how his administration initially responded to the crisis, with many state officials regularly voicing concerns over a lack of testing and medical equipment. The administration promised tens of millions of tests would be available by the end of March, but only about 4 million tests have been conducted thus far.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said Sunday that testing shortages have remained the number one problem for states since the virus reached the US He said that Maryland alone has increased its testing capacity by 5,000 percent in the last month, but that it still has yet to reach a level to comfortably reopen businesses.

Trump has repeatedly dismissed criticism about testing, claiming on Monday that some governors were politicizing the issue.

 “States, not the Federal Government, should be doing the Testing - But we will work with the Governors and get it done," he tweeted on Monday.

Vice President Pence said earlier this week that the US is averaging about 150,000 tests per day. Some health experts have said the figure needs to be in the millions before the US can safely begin reopening portions of the economy.