Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel criticized President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic by claiming the president had tried to “manipulate and withhold” facts from the American public.

Emanuel said, “The governors are no doubt are leading, but they’re doing it with one hand tied behind their back. At the local level, every one of us wants to lead but have the resources of the federal government. You can’t call in the Defense Act and then say I’m not going to turn on the switch here.”

He added, “This is a time where character is revealed. And the president has actually not led, he’s been passive, he’s not taken control of the situation, and it runs against every instinct. You got to be forthright and honest where he’s trying to spin. You got to deal with the data, the science, and the facts rather than manipulate and withhold them. You got to actually bring the country together rather than trying to pit one group against the other. And people at the local level are stepping up, which is good. The reason they’re stepping up is because there’s been such a void left at the national level.”

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