Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi railed against President Donald Trump’s COVID-19 misinformation campaign and relayed the advice she’s received from scientists during an interview with James Corden on The Late Late Show Monday.
When asked why Trump is so averse to listening to experts, Pelosi suggested he was “in denial,” and added, “If you’re not evidence-based, if you’re not science-based, you have the luxury of just saying whatever you feel like. And that luxury is one our country can no longer afford because it is, again, dangerous. I can’t psych out the president and why he does certain things, but I just do wonder how others can stand with him while he says the things he does in a way they’re accepting as truth.”
Pelosi said she believed the best way to combat this was to put as much legitimate information out into the public domain and continue to insist on the truth. Specifically, Pelosi addressed Trump’s growing efforts to re-open the economy as soon as possible, saying it seemed to be a decision based on “who knows what” and that it was “really scary.”
“I felt very responsible to speak out more clearly,” Pelosi said. “Even though we know the public wants us to work together, we cannot aid and abet the danger that he is causing.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Pelosi shared the information she’s received from scientists and experts on the best ways to contain and stem the spread of COVID-19. As always, she said, the most important things were to continue testing and ensure that medical professionals and others on the frontlines, like food suppliers, have the protective equipment they need.
“The president says we’re at war, but our troops do not have force protection,” Pelosi said. They don’t have the equipment to protect themselves, they don’t have the equipment to save others — that’s wrong.”
Following the interview, Pelosi stuck around to partake in The Late Late Show’s quarantine show-and-tell segment, revealing something in her house she was most proud of. The Speaker’s selection: The impressive stock of ice cream stored in her freezer.
