Former President Jimmy Carter said that he is “distressed by the decision” of President Donald Trump to pull funding from the World Health Organization amid the growing coronavirus pandemic.
Carter’s statement on Twitter Wednesday was short but pointed.
“I am distressed by the decision to withhold critically needed U.S. funding for the World Health Organization, especially during an international pandemic. WHO is the only international organization capable of leading the effort to control this virus.”
Trump announced the funding decision Tuesday after accusing the U.N. health agency of failing to do enough to stop the virus from spreading when it first surfaced in China in late 2019. Trump said lives could have been saved had the world body done a better job investigating in the early days of the outbreak. He also blamed the organization for a “disastrous decision” to oppose travel restrictions.
Trump said the U.S. would be reviewing the WHO’s actions to stop the virus before making any final decision on resuming aid.
The group’s response to the president’s decision was mostly guarded afterward.
“Our work will go on,” said WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris.
Trump, who shut down travel from China to the United States on January 31, has also come under severe criticism for his administration’s larger virus response in the months leading up to the outbreak being declared a global pandemic on March 11.
Much of the criticism being leveled at the president focuses on the government’s overall preparedness and for its overall handling of the crisis with medical supplies in severe shortage.
The president is also accused of downplaying the severity of the crisis after dire warnings were circulating in the West Wing as early as January.
The U.S. reportedly funds more than $400 million to WHO. China, Trump explained, funds only about $40 million of the entity’s efforts. The president alluded to preferential treatment for China, which led to the growth of the rapid and raging virus and “put political correctness above life saving measures.”
Private donations were beginning to pour in to the organization Wednesday.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, meanwhile, appeared to echo the president’s sentiments on Twitter Wednesday.
“Until WHO changes its behavior and leadership, I think it's in America’s best interest to withhold funding. They’ve been deceptive, they’ve been slow, they've been Chinese apologists — and they’ve failed miserably when it comes to COVID-19.
On the other side of the aisle, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Wednesday that she plans to challenge Trump’s funding halt.
“The President’s halting of funding to the WHO as it leads the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic is senseless ... This decision is dangerous, illegal and will be swiftly challenged,” Pelosi said.
Global health issues have been a primary focus for Carter since his presidency and he has previously advocated for expanding initiatives to fight outbreaks of disease.
In March, he told Carter Center donors to instead give to the coronavirus response.
“As you are well aware, our country is facing a health crisis. Though the behaviors of Covid-19 are not fully known, what we do know makes it a global threat to our physical and economic health,” Carter wrote.
Earlier this year, Carter issued a statement rejecting Trump’s newly proposed Middle East peace plan, saying Trump’s plan “violates the two-state solution based on the 1967 borders.”
About the Author
