Trump mired in self-pity as polls sink and pandemic worsens
President Donald Trump swept to power by championing the hardships of forgotten men and women, but his re-election bid has so far centered on the plight of just one person: himself.
Trump is struggling to respond to a resurgent pandemic, an economic downturn and nationwide protests for racial justice. The coronavirus has weakened the central plank of his campaign — the economy — while mostly scuttling the rallies that he thrives on.
While all those crises raged, Trump has tweeted “POLITICAL WITCH HUNT!” and repeatedly complained about “PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT!” several times and said courts have given broad deference to presidents, “BUT NOT ME!” He said the Obama administration spied on his campaign. He defended his time golfing and said it was his only exercise.
On Monday, he retweeted a post saying that his own administration’s scientists are “lying” about the virus and that “it’s all about the election.” He falsely attributed the rising U.S. virus case total to increased testing. He has also found fault with Fox News’s coverage of him, before retweeting a Fox Business host’s compliment that the mask he wore for the first time publicly looked good.
All the current crises could make any president seeking re-election feel unlucky. But most of his predecessors, when faced with hardship, kept those feelings to themselves and focused their public statements on the misfortunes of the electorate. Not Trump. [Continue reading…]
In an interview with CBS News on Tuesday, President Trump said the killing of George Floyd was “terrible” but appeared to bristle when asked why Black Americans are “still dying at the hands of law enforcement in this country.”
“So are White people. So are White people. What a terrible question to ask. So are White people,” Mr. Trump told CBS News senior investigative correspondent Catherine Herridge at the White House. “More White people, by the way. More White people.”
Police departments are not required to report comprehensive data on police killings, but researchers have compiled statistics showing Black Americans are more likely to die at the hands of law enforcement than White people. One study published in 2018 found that Black men are roughly 3.5 times more likely to be killed by law enforcement than White men. Another study released in 2019 found that one in 1,000 Black men in the U.S. can expect to die at the hands of police over the course of their lifetimes. [Continue reading…]