TUCSON— Recent remarks by President Trump at rallies and on Twitter have called for a reduction in testing for COVID-19. At his rally in Oklahoma, Trump claimed that he told officials in his administration to slow down testing, and this week on Twitter Trump claimed that “With smaller testing we would show fewer cases.” In response, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following statement:

“Trump’s admission of his effort to slow testing in this country is a shocking low—even for him—and a recipe for disaster for states like Arizona where new cases are now skyrocketing. But this is unsurprising from a President who refused to heed the advice of intelligence experts and public health officials during the early days of the virus for fear of upsetting his poll numbers. Now, Trump is trying to erase his failures by pretending that COVID-19 doesn’t exist while endangering even more lives across the country.

“If we ever want to get back to a semblance of normalcy, we must get a grip on this virus, and more testing and contact tracing is how we do it. To say otherwise not only shows ignorance, but shows a complete disregard for human life and an utter disrespect for the people who have lost their lives.

“I remain outraged by Trump’s incompetency and leadership failure during this dark time. This administration must rapidly release remaining testing funds to hot spots such as Arizona, and Republicans must stop blocking the HEROES Act which provides urgent assistance to our suffering communities. Lives are on the line, and the absence of real leadership in our time of crisis will leave this country in ruin.”

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