Tens of thousands of news cases of COVID-19 are diagnosed in the United States every day, but if you listen to President Donald Trump, it’s easy to forget the pandemic is still raging. He shows little interest. He’s more focused, as ever, on his own personal grievances. Of course, he has the luxury of not worrying much about the virus when his job is secured — at least through January — and everyone around him is subjected to a rigorous testing regime that people at most U.S. schools and workplaces can only dream of.
As the Democratic Party carried out its national convention this week, Trump continued to give in to his self-destructive impulses. It made for a particularly stark contrast. Most of former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign had been carried out under the radar — he hasn’t simply been hiding in his basement, as critics claim, but he hasn’t been clamoring for the spotlight — but it burst on to the national stage for two-plus hours of primetime for four nights in a row. And while the Democrats were, for the most part, organized and professional, Trump was crawling out of his skin at the thought of ceding the country’s attention.
So instead of letting Democrats bask in the traditional uninterrupted flow of media attention given during presidential nominating conventions, Trump demanded to be seen. Continue reading.