President Donald Trump tweets Illinois should not ask for federal coronavirus bailout

CHICAGO (WLS) -- President Donald Trump tweeted Monday about providing aid to states, specifically Illinois, during the pandemic.

The president wrote, " Why should the people and taxpayers of America be bailing out poorly run states (like Illinois, as example) and cities, in all cases Democrat run and managed, when most of the other states are not looking for bailout help? I am open to discussing anything, but just asking?"

President Trump and Governor JB Pritzker have criticized each other several times in recent weeks over the federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In response, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Illinois is a well-run state and praised Governor Pritzker's job of governing the state.

"In taking the specific steps that were necessary to keep people safe, we have caused damage to our economy, restaurants, bars, service industry and so forth," she said. "Those kind of closures, I don't think anybody took lightly and I know the governor didn't and neither did I, but they were necessary to save lives."

Mayor Lightfoot called Trump's handling of the COVID-19 crisis "abysmal" and said Chicago and Illinois taxpayers are just asking for their fair share.

"Obviously, the president's ability to judge how someone is performing and functioning is clearly off," she said. "His meter is badly damaged because he thinks that he has done a good job in this crisis and nothing could be further from the truth."

Trump has a teleconference meeting with the nation's governors Monday afternoon. He will not be at a Coronavirus Task Force briefing at the White House, which has been canceled.

The press conferences have been a daily event for several weeks, but over the weekend, Trump tweeted that updates with the task force are "not worth the time and effort."

The President has come under fire after suggesting last week that ingesting disinfectant might help those suffering with the virus. On Friday, Trump left the podium without taking any questions.