US presidential candidate Joe Biden on Sunday accused President Donald Trump of giving up in the fight against COVID-19, AFP reports.
Biden’s comments came after Trump's chief of staff Mark Meadows conceded that "we are not going to control the pandemic, which he said could only be done through "vaccines, therapeutics and other mitigation areas."
Control was not practical, he said, because "it is a contagious virus just like the flu."
Biden immediately seized on Meadows' comment as he again hammered the administration over the virus, which has set records for new cases in recent days, with nearly 90,000 on Saturday.
"It was a candid acknowledgement of what President Trump's strategy has clearly been from the beginning of this crisis: to wave the white flag of defeat and hope that by ignoring it, the virus would simply go away," the former vice president said in a statement quoted by AFP.
"It hasn't, and it won't," he added.
Biden’s comments came hours after Vice President Mike Pence's chief of staff Marc Short, and reportedly several of his aides, tested positive for COVID-19.
Campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh said Sunday that Pence would continue, with doctors' approval, to criss-cross the country in the waning days of the campaign. Both Pence and his wife had tested negative, he said.
"The folks on his staff are in quarantine, and he relies on the very sound medical advice of the White House medical unit," Murtaugh was quoted as having told Fox News.
Biden’s criticism of Trump also came a day after former President Barack Obama accused Trump of massively mishandling the pandemic.
"He hasn’t shown any interest in doing the work. We literally left this White House a pandemic playbook that showed them how to respond before a virus reached our shores," Obama said during a campaign event in Miami.
"The rest of us have to live with the consequences of what he's done. At least 220,000 Americans are dead. More than 100,000 small businesses have closed," Obama added. "You think he's hard at work coming up with a plan to get us out of this mess?"
The former President also questioned how Donald Trump can handle COVID-19 as "new cases are breaking records" eight months into the pandemic.
"Donald Trump isn't going to suddenly protect all of us. He can't even take the basic steps to protect himself," Obama claimed.
In response, Trump mocked Obama on Twitter, writing, “Nobody is showing up for Obama’s hate laced speeches. 47 people! No energy, but still better than Joe!”