Tag: Trump ego

Trump’s propaganda-laden, off-the-rails coronavirus briefing

Washington Post logoNear the start of his daily coronavirus briefing on Monday, President Trump made a statement that betrayed, better than just about anything, how he views the purpose of such briefings.

Before playing a campaign-style video intended to show his decisive action on the virus and to accuse his critics of being the actual culprits on downplaying the threat, Trump cued it up by talking about what he wanted to do after it played.

“Most importantly,” he said, “we’re going to get back on to the reason we’re here, which is the success we’re having.” Continue reading.

What it really means when Trump calls a story ‘fake news’

Washington Post logoPresident Trump has rhapsodized in recent weeks about how special Easter is for him. He never quite specified why that is, but for a while it was the date he had in mind for ending the national shutdown — the day on which he envisioned Americans crowding the church pews once again.

And yet he spent much of the holiest weekend on the Christian calendar in an uproar over crushing news reports that make it clear his early response to coronavirus warnings was a failure — that cost thousands of human lives.

On April 4, The Washington Post reported that it took 70 days from the time Trump was first notified of the seriousness of the coronavirus threat for him to treat it “not as a distant threat or harmless flu strain well under control, but as a lethal force that had outflanked America’s defenses and was poised to kill tens of thousands of citizens.” The Post detailed how that 10-week period “now stands as critical time that was squandered.” Continue reading.

Trump Turns Daily Coronavirus Briefing Into a Defense of His Record

New York Times logoAlso at the briefing on Monday, Dr. Anthony Fauci said a comment he made that was seen as critical of the president was taken out of context, and Mr. Trump said he did not intend to fire him.

WASHINGTON — President Trump turned Monday’s daily coronavirus task force briefing into an aggressive defense of his own halting response to the pandemic and used a campaign-style video to denounce criticism that he moved too slowly to limit the deadly spread of the virus.

For nearly an hour, Mr. Trump vented his frustration after weekend news reports that his own public health officials were prepared by late February to recommend aggressive social distancing measures, but that the president did not announce them until several weeks later — a crucial delay that allowed the virus to spread.

Mr. Trump broadly mischaracterized an article on his response to the coronavirus, published over the weekend in The New York Times, repeatedly insisting that the United States had very few cases of the virus in early January — six weeks earlier — and angrily mocking a suggestion that was never made: that he should have ordered all schools and businesses shut that month. Continue reading.

Mitch McConnell calls Trump ‘nuts’ behind his back — and even compares him to Roy Moore: report

AlterNet logoWhat Republicans say about President Donald Trump publicly and what they say in private can be two very different things — and according to The New Yorker’s Jane Mayer, a prime example is Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Publicly, the Kentucky Republican paints himself as a staunch Trump ally. But Mayer, in an in-depth article, reports that privately, McConnell has described the president as “nuts” and expressed frustration with some of Trump’s antics.

Mayer’s piece, headlined “How Mitch McConnell Became Trump’s Enabler in Chief,” takes a close look at McConnell’s history — both before and after Trump became president. And she stresses that McConnell, publicly, has been a vigorous Trump defender. But in private, the Senate majority leader has, at times, cringed.

“Although the two men almost always support each other in public,” Mayer reports, “several members of McConnell’s innermost circle told me that in private, things are quite different. They say that behind Trump’s back, McConnell has called the president ‘nuts’ and made clear that he considers himself smarter than Trump — and that he ‘can’t stand him.’” Continue reading.

Trump claims he, not governors, has authority on opening state economies

The Hill logoPresident Trump on Monday claimed that he, not state governors, has the ultimate authority to loosen restrictions on states as the coronavirus outbreak eases, an assertion disputed by legal experts.

“For the purpose of creating conflict and confusion, some in the Fake News Media are saying that it is the Governors decision to open up the states, not that of the President of the United States & the Federal Government. Let it be fully understood that this is incorrect,” Trump tweeted Monday morning.

“It is the decision of the President, and for many good reasons. With that being said, the Administration and I are working closely with the Governors, and this will continue,” Trump continued. “A decision by me, in conjunction with the Governors and input from others, will be made shortly!” Continue reading.

The Memo: Political tide on crisis threatens to turn against Trump

The Hill logoThe political tide in the coronavirus crisis is threatening to turn against President Trump, who faces what he himself has called the biggest decision of his presidency on how swiftly to recommend a reopening of a nation buckling under the pandemic’s economic strain. 

Recent polls have shown public approval of his handling of the crisis ticking downward. His overall approval ratings have followed a similar trajectory, reversing the gains he made at the beginning of the crisis.

Trump could also be hurt as the true magnitude of the economic crisis begins to bite. Continue reading.

White House denies Trump is considering firing Fauci despite his retweet of a hashtag calling for his ouster

Washington Post logoThe White House denied Monday that President Trump is considering firing the nation’s top infectious-disease specialist, Anthony S. Fauci, after Trump retweeted a message Sunday night that included the hashtag “FireFauci” amid a flurry of Twitter activity responding to criticism of the federal response to the coronavirus outbreak.

“This media chatter is ridiculous — President Trump is not firing Dr. Fauci,” White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said in a statement. “Dr. Fauci has been and remains a trusted advisor to President Trump.”

At Monday’s coronavirus task force briefing, Fauci appeared to walk back his comments to CNN that had prompted a sharp response from Trump, explaining that he had been responding to a “hypothetical question” and was not intending to criticize the president. Continue reading.

How false hope spread about hydroxychloroquine to treat covid-19 — and the consequences that followed

NOTE: This is a free article from The Washington Post
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“But I think it could be, based on what I see, it could be a game changer.”

— President Trump, at a White House news briefing, March 19, 2020

“Hydroxychloroquine — I don’t know, it’s looking like it’s having some good results. That would be a phenomenal thing.”

— Trump, at a White House news briefing, April 3

“What do you have to lose? I’ll say it again: What do you have to lose? Take it. I really think they should take it.”

— Trump, at a White House news briefing, April 4 Continue reading “How false hope spread about hydroxychloroquine to treat covid-19 — and the consequences that followed”

Trump Lashes Out at Fauci Amid Criticism of Slow Virus Response

New York Times logoThe president retweeted a post calling for the government’s top infectious disease specialist to be fired after the doctor acknowledged that shutting down the country earlier could have saved lives.

WASHINGTON — President Trump publicly signaled his frustration on Sunday with Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the federal government’s top infectious disease expert, after the doctor said more lives could have been saved from the coronavirus if the country had been shut down earlier.

Mr. Trump reposted a Twitter message that said “Time to #FireFauci” as he rejected criticism of his slow initial response to the pandemic that has now killed more than 22,000 people in the United States. The president privately has been irritated at times with Dr. Fauci, but the Twitter post was the most explicit he has been in letting that show publicly.

The message Mr. Trump retweeted came from a former Republican congressional candidate. “Fauci is now saying that had Trump listened to the medical experts earlier he could’ve saved more lives,” said the tweet by DeAnna Lorraine, who got less than 2 percent of the vote in an open primary against Speaker Nancy Pelosi last month. “Fauci was telling people on February 29th that there was nothing to worry about and it posed no threat to the US at large. Time to #Fire Fauci.” Continue reading.

Investigative reporter breaks down the real reason Republicans ‘threw a fit in Wisconsin’: Trump’s GOP is ‘canceling the American people’s right to vote’

AlterNet logoEncouraged by the pain, suffering, misery and distraction caused by the coronavirus pandemic, Donald Trump is continuing his assault on American democracy and the rule of law.

His most recent move: removing at least seven inspectors general who provide independent oversight within various departments of the United States government.

Trump is a malignant narcissist with authoritarian tendencies and may well be a sociopath. Like a Mafia boss, he views personal loyalty as more important than loyalty to the Constitution and the rule of law. Aided by Attorney General William Barr, Trump appears poised to loot the coronavirus relief funds passed by Congress, harass and silence his political enemies, speed up the country’s downward slide into failed democracy, and unleash more cruelty against those Americans he deems to be insufficiently loyal or otherwise “undesirable.” Continue reading.