Trump's awful new reelection strategy makes a powerful case against him
After denying the very existence of the novel coronavirus for weeks, then explicitly disavowing all responsibility for its carnage, then blaming a dozen other people and entities for his own disastrous failures, then flirting with the idea of playing “wartime president” against the pandemic only to rapidly jettison that pose, President Trump has now adopted yet another posture toward the biggest public health emergency in modern times:
Suck it up, America.
Over the weekend, Trump claimed that “99 percent” of cases are “totally harmless.” This disgusting lie appears based on an absurdly downgraded death-rate calculation and ignores multiple realities: The virus’s degradations are severe and persistent even in many who survive it, and carriers spread it to others — indeed, we’re hitting new highs in case levels as we speak.
But claims like this will be increasingly central to Trump’s reelection effort. The Post reports that his advisers, recognizing the dire threat the virus poses to his chances, are seeking to “reframe his response”:
White House officials also hope Americans will grow numb to the escalating death toll and learn to accept tens of thousands of new cases a day, according to three people familiar with the White House’s thinking, who requested anonymity to reveal internal deliberations. Americans will “live with the virus being a threat,” in the words of one of those people, a senior administration official.
There are actually two layers of depravity here. The first is the suggestion that Trump’s own past handling of the coronavirus can be somehow disconnected from the rolling catastrophe of this moment.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/06/trumps-awful-new-reelection-message-makes-powerful-case-against-him/
= new reply since forum marked as read
