President Donald Trump is failing to inspire confidence in his handling of the Coronavirus outbreak. He spent weeks dismissing the illness as irrelevant and insisting it would soon disappear from the U.S., and this Tuesday, as confirmed U.S. cases have climbed well into the thousands, he’s resorted to his default response to the slightest challenge — mudslinging on Twitter. In an early morning tweet, he again insisted on referring to the Coronavirus as the “Chinese virus,” although the outbreak there is almost completely slowed, and he belittled New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for his simple insistence that states should get equitable help from the federal government.
He commented:
‘Cuomo wants “all states to be treated the same.” But all states aren’t the same. Some are being hit hard by the Chinese Virus, some are being hit practically not at all. New York is a very big “hotspot”, West Virginia has, thus far, zero cases. Andrew, keep politics out of it….’
Cuomo wants “all states to be treated the same.” But all states aren’t the same. Some are being hit hard by the Chinese Virus, some are being hit practically not at all. New York is a very big “hotspot”, West Virginia has, thus far, zero cases. Andrew, keep politics out of it….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 17, 2020
West Virginia is the only state with zero cases. Every single other state has a confirmed case, and thanks to this pesky thing called geography, cases are likely to continue to spread in between and among the states. Leaving one state vulnerable means that its neighbors are left vulnerable too, and so on. Yet, Trump is insisting that his arbitrary response plans are actually great and in the clear, and he’s himself politicizing the situation by refusing to take Cuomo’s simple demand seriously — not to mention the racist “Chinese virus” moniker.
He also belittled Michigan’s Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Trump mocked her with a nickname, because even in a time of national public health crisis, he apparently won’t give up his commitment to his self-centered bullying. It’s unclear what else there would even be for the governor to do. The day before Trump’s arrogant tweet, she banned dining out and expanded unemployment benefits in her state.
Failing Michigan Governor must work harder and be much more proactive. We are pushing her to get the job done. I stand with Michigan!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 17, 2020
Federal Government is working very well with the Governors and State officials. Good things will happen! #KILLTHEVIRUS
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 17, 2020
Trump also retweeted some general commentary and praise for him, of course, about the situation.
Check out Twitter’s response below…
