‘Will CNN call him xenophobic now?’ Biden says Covid-19 is like ‘attack from abroad’ after Trump was slammed for ‘foreign virus’

Joe Biden raised a few eyebrows after he compared the coronavirus outbreak in the US with “being attacked from abroad,” prompting many to wonder if he will be held to the same standards by the media as Donald Trump is.

The first one-on-one debate between former VP Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders was largely overshadowed by the coronavirus crisis raging in the US, with both Democratic candidates unloading heavily on US President Donald Trump for his handling of the pandemic.

While the two clashed over Sanders’ ‘Medicare for All’ proposal, Biden struck a conciliatory tone, saying he “agrees with Bernie” in principle on how to deal with the health scare.

“I agree with Bernie. We’re in a situation where we have to now be providing for the hospitals that are going to be needed. We need it now.”

Biden then made a comparison that struck many as odd, essentially likening the outbreak of Covid-19, which originated in Wuhan, China in December, to a hostile invasion.

This is like we’re being attacked from abroad. This is like a war.

Netizens were quick to pounce on Biden, who previously took aim at Trump for describing the disease as a “foreign virus.”

“Labeling Covid-19 a 'foreign virus' does not displace accountability for the misjudgments that have been taken, thus far, by the Trump administration,” Biden said as recently as Thursday.

Trump has taken a lot of flak from the liberal media over his remark, including from CNN, which hosted the Biden-Sanders debate on Sunday.

Some suggested that double standards were at play at CNN, with its hosts not in a rush to challenge Biden on his words.

“Will CNN call him xenophobic like they did Trump when he called it a ‘foreign virus’?” one person asked.

The number of coronavirus cases in the US has exceeded 3,300 with at least 63 deaths. With the number of those infected soaring, Democrats have been accusing Trump of mishandling the crisis, seeking to weaponize the national emergency.

Shortly after the debate began, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) unveiled new guidelines, urging against holding mass events with 50 people or more. Parades, sporting events, festivals, concerts, conferences, and even weddings fall under the ban, which will be in effect for the next eight weeks at least.

The set-up for the debate itself seemed eerie – the venue was moved from Arizona to CNN’s Washington headquarters, with no live audience. Sanders and Biden greeted each other with elbow bumps and proceeded to their podiums, set six feet apart in line with the ‘social distancing’ guidelines.

Like this story? Share it with a friend!