Ahead of today’s fundraiser hosted by Donald Trump, Jr. and Kimberly Guilfoyle in New York, Democratic National Committee spokesperson Will Baskin-Gerwitz released the following statement:

“When 750 New Yorkers were dying every single day four months ago from COVID-19, Donald Trump was promising that the pandemic was ‘going to go away.’ When hundreds of thousands of working New Yorkers lost their jobs this summer, Donald Trump’s response was that ‘our economy is starting to do really well.’ So of course the Trump family is only back in New York to dine with out-of-touch mega-donors — ordinary voters don’t want to see their failures, hear their excuses or have to think about them one second after voting Trump out this November.”

BACKGROUND ON TRUMP’S FAILED PANDEMIC RESPONSE

Promise: “We have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China. We have it under control. It’s going to be just fine.” [CNBC Interview, 1/22/20]

• Reality: After Trump wasted time ignoring his own advisors and downplaying the coronavirus pandemic, the United States leads the world with nearly 4.8 million cases and nearly 160,000 deaths.

Promise: “We are marshalling the full power of the federal government and the private sector to protect the American people.” [Oval Office Address, 3/11/20]

• Reality: Even in the midst of a global pandemic, Trump and the Republican Party are attempting to overturn the Affordable Care Act — endangering health coverage for 607,000 New Yorkers and threatening protections for more than 8.6 million New Yorkers with preexisting conditions.

• Reality: Trump’s testing “strategy” only aims to provide tests for 2% of New Yorkers. And even as experts warned of a coming pandemic, Trump sent record shipments of N95 masks overseas.