During a White House Coronavirus Task Force press briefing, CBS News reporter Paula Reid repeatedly asked President Donald Trump over his actions leading to the coronavirus outbreak.

On Monday, the president used the opportunity to address the fake news in the media and even went on to present a short video, detailing how the media networks had also failed to predict and report the possible extent of the pandemic. In the said briefing, Trump also slammed the media over its criticisms against the administration’s coronavirus response.

The president explained that both the administration and even US medical experts, such as Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx, had not seen it coming. Moreover, Trump defended his decision, citing that back in January, there was only one confirmed COVID-19 case and that the number was not enough to raise the alarm.

Trump added that when he issued a travel ban on China, presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden, and the rest of the Democratic party had condemned his decision as “xenophobic” and “racist.”

However, the media refused to believe and give credibility to Trump’s statements. Reid butted in, saying that Trump had “bought” enough time to prepare for the necessary testing, equipment, and facilities that hospitals will need. Instead, the reporter claimed that Trump chose to do nothing about the looming threat of coronavirus.

The president tried to explain, but Reid kept cutting him off by forcing down her questions. After numerous attempts, Trump finally gave up and slammed the reporter. Out of frustration, the president went on to describe Reid as “disgraceful.” Trump continued, “It’s so disgraceful the way that you say that. Let me just…listen; I just went over it.”

Despite Trump’s statements, and repeated attempts to let him finish, Reid still pressed on to question the administration with the time they had to stop the virus. She also tried to put the blame on Trump, lamenting that 20 million Americans have lost their jobs, while thousands wound up dead.

She then lashed on to the president and described his press briefing as a “rant.” Reid said, “how is this rant supposed to make people feel positive in an unprecedented crisis?” In wits end, the president responded described CBS’ news coverage as fake, “You know you’re a fake.” Turning on to the heated exchange, Trump said that the American people were wise enough to know that the network was biased. He added that it might be precisely the reason why the network had received a lower rating than they previously had.

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ven the leading figure in Trump’s Coronavirus Taskforce, Dr. Fauci, had been asked to resign over accusations that the US medical expert had downplayed the possible effects of the coronavirus. Fauci was being criticized over the statements that he made on February 29, in which he claimed that the new virus did not pose a significant threat to the public.

Despite his accomplishments as the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, he was asked to resign. However, the president refused to allow Fauci’s resignation, saying that the media was wrong and that the doctor had been doing a “great job.”