U.S-Bolton says Donald Trump had turned ‘a blind eye’ to coronavirus pandemic

Former White House national security advisor John Bolton, who has generated quite a stir with his memoir on US President Donald Trump, has maintained his former boss was “turning a blind eye” at the onset of the coronavirus outbreak because he did not want to hear “bad news” about his “friend,” China President Xi Jinping, the CNN reported.
Bolton told the news outlet, on Wednesday that he does not have confidence in US President Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I think the President did not want to hear bad news about Xi Jinping, his friend. He did not want to hear bad news about the cover-up of the virus in China, or its potential effect on the China trade deal that he wants so much. And he didn’t want to hear about the potential impact of a pandemic on the American economy and its effect on his reelection. Turning a blind eye to all these early signs I think hampered the country’s ability to deal with this, and continues to do so,” Bolton told CNN.

Asked if he had confidence in Trump’s handling of the pandemic, Bolton responded: “I do not.”

“I think in a country the size of the United States, state and local authorities should have a big role, but at the federal level, the response has not been consistent,” he said.