Navarro blasts WHO, says global health agency has 'blood on their hands' in coronavirus pandemic

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Peter Navarro on President Trump's decision to halt WHO funding, private-public response to COVID-19 crisis

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro joins Martha MacCallum on 'The Story.'

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White House economic adviser Peter Navarro told Fox News Tuesday that the World Health Organization has "blood on their hands" due to inaction and repeated vouching for China in the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

"They basically hid information from the public," Navarro told "The Story." "They failed to call this a pandemic long after others had rightfully done so.

"And there is blood on their hands. I think President Trump is absolutely correct to have a full investigation of how that happened and what China's role might've been ... because we cannot have a World Health Organization that's going to fail us in a pandemic and that's what happened."

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Moments before Navarro joined host Martha MacCallum, Trump announced that his administration will halt all funding for the WHO, saying the agency had put "political correctness over lifesaving measures."

Navarro claimed that while the WHO has dithered, the White House has taken active steps to protect the American people as the outbreak rages.

The adviser cited a General Motors assembly plant in Kokomo, Ind., that began rolling out ventilators after an 11-day manufacturing process.

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Navarro also recounted a recent conversation with New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio about sending Tyvek protective suits to the city. During the call, Navarro said he raised the possibility of revamping Manhattan's Garment District to once again be a hub of manufacturing.

The adviser claimed that de Blasio's "eyes lit up over the phone" at the prospect, with Navarro telling host MacCallum the idea could spur a potential "industry of the future" for the hard-hit city.