President Donald Trump has continued to face heavy criticism for the failures of his administration’s response to the Coronavirus pandemic, and he has consistently refused to take this criticism seriously, no matter the mounting case count and death toll. Throughout the crisis, he has frequently sounded far more concerned with expressions of his public image like television ratings for his Coronavirus-related press conferences than he’s been about the actual suffering on the part of Americans. During an appearance on MSNBC, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) denounced the president for leading what the prominent Democrat described as a moral failure.
He summarized:
‘There’s a disturbing echo in Trump’s coronavirus response. From eschewing pandemic preparedness and oversight to demanding praise, Trump acts in his personal political interest, not the national interest. Because a man with no moral compass will never find his way.’
There’s a disturbing echo in Trump’s coronavirus response.
From eschewing pandemic preparedness and oversight to demanding praise,
Trump acts in his personal political interest, not the national interest.
Because a man with no moral compass will never find his way. pic.twitter.com/Z6M4p8ZS5Z
— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) April 26, 2020
It’s true — the pace of the news surrounding the Coronavirus pandemic may make the issue fade in prominence, but at times during this crisis, Trump has even publicly demanded praise from governors before they get the lifesaving support that they need amidst the pandemic. At a press conference, he insisted that he told Vice President Mike Pence not to call governors back if they weren’t appreciative enough of his administration’s previous work. Lives are on the line, and Trump has been trying to use the desperately needed relief as leverage to make himself feel better about himself.
In the absence of competent leadership from the president, governors have been left going it alone. Around the U.S., groups of governors have established intrastate pacts meant to coordinate safely reopening the economy once Coronavirus-induced social distancing passes, and a number of governors have also replied to the president’s criticism by noting that they’ve still been able to maintain plenty of effective relationships with people in the federal government other than the president, who’s been getting increasingly unhinged. Recently, he even insisted that his followers should “liberate” certain Democrat-led states with stay-at-home orders in line with guidelines from his own administration.
Check out Twitter’s response below:
