Trump said China could stop the pandemic after initially praising their efforts

US President Trump once again voiced allegations that China could stop the global coronavirus pandemic, calling the spread “the worst attack we have ever experienced in our country.”

Speaking from the Oval Office today, the President went on to say, “This is worse than Pearl Harbor. It’s worse than the World Trade Center.”

What do we know: So far, more than 71,000 people in America have died of the corona virus. In comparison, more than 2,000 Americans were killed in the US Bombardment of Pearl Harbor during World War II. In September 11, 2001, a total of 2,977 people were killed in New York City, Washington, DC and outside Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

But while Pearl Harbor and 9/11 were direct and targeted attacks on the United States, the coronavirus pandemic affected countries around the world, including China. As of today, Johns Hopkins University places Chinese death toll from the virus in 4,637.

The President added: “And that should never have happened. It could have been stopped at its source. It could have been stopped in China. It should have been stopped right at the source. And that didn’t happen.”

In recent days, Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo have doubled that statement that the virus originated from a laboratory in Wuhan city in central China, where the outbreak was first detected last December.

The claim was surprisingly withdrawn fierce rebuttal from the Chinese government, which described the accusations as “blemishes” intended to increase the chances of Trump’s re-election.

Intelligence shared among the Five Eyes network – alliances between the United States and Britain, Australia, New Zealand and Canada – also reportedly appeared to contradicting Trump administration statement.

Trump’s recent dislike of China is far from it past statement about the nation and its leader, Xi Jinping, who had previously been praised for its transparency and plague management.

Last month, CNN identified at least 37 separate incidents in which Trump praised China since January, including the most recent one on April 1. (Following is the timeline of the statement.)

As happened recently last month, Trump is touting his government’s trade agreement with China during the White House coronavirus taskforce. The president said relations with China were “very good” and “the biggest communication” was between him and President Xi.

“So, look, relations with China are good, and my relationship with him, you know, is very good,” Trump said on April 1.

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