A stark comparison has emerged between the number of coronavirus-related deaths under the leadership of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. In a reversal of previous claims, coronavirus deaths under Biden’s first 10 months in office have surpassed the total under Trump’s final 12 months.
Speaking during the debate, Biden acknowledged that the pandemic was “badly handled” and that many people were dying. Trump, on the other hand, attributed the higher death toll to his administration’s handling of the crisis. He claimed that his administration had largely contained the virus, but that Biden inherited a worse situation and failed to capitalize on the progress made.
The numbers back up Trump’s claim. According to Johns Hopkins University statistics, the nationwide coronavirus death toll stood at 396,442 when Biden took office, but has since risen to 792,971 as of Wednesday.
This dramatic increase in deaths within Biden’s first 10 months has led some to question his leadership, particularly in light of his own campaign statement in October 2020, when he said that anyone responsible for that many deaths “should not remain as president of the United States of America.” The number of deaths at the time was around 220,000.
