Donald Trump is colossally unfit to lead a response to the coronavirus pandemic, one of the most lethal and demanding situations to challenge the United States in 100 years. He is corrupt, unable to apply rigorous thinking to problems, selfish, and lacking in empathy for others. Not only is he incapable of managing an adequate response to this pandemic, he prevents other parts of both the federal and state government from mounting acceptable national response. Trump’s previous conduct, as a businessman, candidate, and President, show the intractability of his detrimental influence. Relieving the effects of pandemic must first start with removing Trump.
Trump’s Corruption
Trump’s corruption has been evident in both his business practices and his presidency. He has broken the law and engaged in unethical behavior while avoiding significant legal sanctions. But as President, his corruption has undermined the rule of law and threatens democracy.
Throughout Trump’s business career credible press reports linked him to organized crime, money laundering, and other illicit schemes. Trump’s association with Russian mobsters, most of whom had Russian government connections, was part of the impetus for the FBI investigation of his Presidential campaign. The details of these associations are detailed in the Mueller Report. In addition, Trump has been sanctioned or found legally liable for running a fraudulent real estate school and violating laws associated with running a charitable foundation. Also, an exhaustive investigation by the New York Times uncovered evidence of Trump’s federal and state tax fraud. The state of New York is currently investigating these allegations while the Congressional Democrats attempt to obtain Trump’s tax records.
Trump’s Corruption
Trump’s corruption has been evident in both his business practices and his presidency. He has broken the law and engaged in unethical behavior while avoiding significant legal sanctions. But as President, his corruption has undermined the rule of law and threatens democracy.
Throughout Trump’s business career credible press reports linked him to organized crime, money laundering, and other illicit schemes. Trump’s association with Russian mobsters, most of whom had Russian government connections, was part of the impetus for the FBI investigation of his Presidential campaign. The details of these associations are detailed in the Mueller Report. In addition, Trump has been sanctioned or found legally liable for running a fraudulent real estate school and violating laws associated with running a charitable foundation. Also, an exhaustive investigation by the New York Times uncovered evidence of Trump’s federal and state tax fraud. The state of New York is currently investigating these allegations while the Congressional Democrats attempt to obtain Trump’s tax records.
| One of Trump’s first acts as President was a florid example of Trump’s criminality. To stop two of his former girlfriends, a porn star and a Playboy bunny, from revealing these relationships, Trump had authorized payments to these women and then reimbursed his attorney with checks written in the Oval Office. The money for these payments, however, represented campaign contributions and were illegal. Trump’s attorney, Michael Cohen, pleaded guilty to two campaign finance charges and is currently serving a three-year sentence (now by house-arrest). Trump, as a sitting President, could not be indicted, but remains an unindicted co-conspirator. | In Memoriam Mary Scott 1922- 2020 Richard L Scott 1923 - 2020  A lovely couple, married over 70 years. Proud parents and grandparents. COVID-19 overtook them in the same week. |
Trump was impeached for attempting to extort the President of the Ukraine. Trump withheld critical weapons, funds, and public support from the Ukrainians unless their President smeared the reputation of former Vice-President, Joe Biden, by launching an investigation of him. Although Trump was not convicted and removed from office, many of the Republican Senators who refused to heed the evidence against Trump admitted they thought he was guilty.
Trump’s previous pattern of corrupt and criminal conduct raises questions about his behavior during COVID-19. For example, Congress passed, and Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) as part of the Cares Act. The PPP was intended to ensure companies with fewer than 500 employees and no other sources of funds were able to keep paying their employees with forgivable loans. While many small businesses were unable to obtain PPP funds, those that had beneficial relationships with Trump received millions of dollars in low interest loans. For example, Phunware, the firm that tracks smartphones so that attendees at Trump rallies could be contacted, received $2.85 million. This amount was 14 times that the of the average loan, even though Phunware went public in 2018, and thus, had other ways of obtaining funds. Major Trump donors like Archie and Monty Bennett of Ashford Hospitality Trust and Braemar Hotels & Resorts have contributed nearly $2 million to Trump and Republicans since 2016. In return they received $59 million in PPP funds. Ronald Gidwitz and his family of Continental Materials, a construction equipment company, has have contributed over $159,000 to Trump and the Republican Party. They received $5.4 million in PPP funds. CloudCommerce, whose largest stockholder is Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, received nearly $800,000 in PPP funds.
Trump was impeached for attempting to extort the President of the Ukraine. Trump withheld critical weapons, funds, and public support from the Ukrainians unless their President smeared the reputation of former Vice-President, Joe Biden, by launching an investigation of him. Although Trump was not convicted and removed from office, many of the Republican Senators who refused to heed the evidence against Trump admitted they thought he was guilty.
Trump’s previous pattern of corrupt and criminal conduct raises questions about his behavior during COVID-19. For example, Congress passed, and Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) as part of the Cares Act. The PPP was intended to ensure companies with fewer than 500 employees and no other sources of funds were able to keep paying their employees with forgivable loans. While many small businesses were unable to obtain PPP funds, those that had beneficial relationships with Trump received millions of dollars in low interest loans. For example, Phunware, the firm that tracks smartphones so that attendees at Trump rallies could be contacted, received $2.85 million. This amount was 14 times that the of the average loan, even though Phunware went public in 2018, and thus, had other ways of obtaining funds. Major Trump donors like Archie and Monty Bennett of Ashford Hospitality Trust and Braemar Hotels & Resorts have contributed nearly $2 million to Trump and Republicans since 2016. In return they received $59 million in PPP funds. Ronald Gidwitz and his family of Continental Materials, a construction equipment company, has have contributed over $159,000 to Trump and the Republican Party. They received $5.4 million in PPP funds. CloudCommerce, whose largest stockholder is Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, received nearly $800,000 in PPP funds.
Trump’s previous pattern of corrupt and criminal conduct raises questions about his behavior during COVID-19. For example, Congress passed, and Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) as part of the Cares Act. The PPP was intended to ensure companies with fewer than 500 employees and no other sources of funds were able to keep paying their employees with forgivable loans. While many small businesses were unable to obtain PPP funds, those that had beneficial relationships with Trump received millions of dollars in low interest loans. For example, Phunware, the firm that tracks smartphones so that attendees at Trump rallies could be contacted, received $2.85 million. This amount was 14 times that the of the average loan, even though Phunware went public in 2018, and thus, had other ways of obtaining funds. Major Trump donors like Archie and Monty Bennett of Ashford Hospitality Trust and Braemar Hotels & Resorts have contributed nearly $2 million to Trump and Republicans since 2016. In return they received $59 million in PPP funds. Ronald Gidwitz and his family of Continental Materials, a construction equipment company, has have contributed over $159,000 to Trump and the Republican Party. They received $5.4 million in PPP funds. CloudCommerce, whose largest stockholder is Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, received nearly $800,000 in PPP funds.
Trump was impeached for attempting to extort the President of the Ukraine. Trump withheld critical weapons, funds, and public support from the Ukrainians unless their President smeared the reputation of former Vice-President, Joe Biden, by launching an investigation of him. Although Trump was not convicted and removed from office, many of the Republican Senators who refused to heed the evidence against Trump admitted they thought he was guilty.
Trump’s previous pattern of corrupt and criminal conduct raises questions about his behavior during COVID-19. For example, Congress passed, and Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) as part of the Cares Act. The PPP was intended to ensure companies with fewer than 500 employees and no other sources of funds were able to keep paying their employees with forgivable loans. While many small businesses were unable to obtain PPP funds, those that had beneficial relationships with Trump received millions of dollars in low interest loans. For example, Phunware, the firm that tracks smartphones so that attendees at Trump rallies could be contacted, received $2.85 million. This amount was 14 times that the of the average loan, even though Phunware went public in 2018, and thus, had other ways of obtaining funds. Major Trump donors like Archie and Monty Bennett of Ashford Hospitality Trust and Braemar Hotels & Resorts have contributed nearly $2 million to Trump and Republicans since 2016. In return they received $59 million in PPP funds. Ronald Gidwitz and his family of Continental Materials, a construction equipment company, has have contributed over $159,000 to Trump and the Republican Party. They received $5.4 million in PPP funds. CloudCommerce, whose largest stockholder is Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, received nearly $800,000 in PPP funds.
Vanity Fair Trump’s Magical Thinking
Trump’s magical thinking stems from his inability to recognize that some of the consequences of his actions may injure himself as well as others. He seems fixated on the potential rewards of his efforts without weighing the costs. Some observers have tried to excuse Trump’s magical thinking by noting that his missteps are a result of his inexperience. But even when he has surrounded himself with experts who caution him about negative consequences, he has either ignored their advice or sought out others, less expert, who endorse his recklessness.
As an inexperienced gambling casino owner, Trump hired one of the best casino managers in the industry to guide him. Despite this expert’s advice, Trump chose the strategy of attracting wealthy customers who gamble large amounts of money. Experts in the casino industry consider this strategy to be profitable, but too risky. They prefer the less risky path of attracting well-to-do slots players who lose their money but keep returning. Ignoring his expert’s advice, Trump lured a wealthy gambler to Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino by offering him a $6 million line of credit. The player wound up taking Trump for almost $6.5 million. Trump fired his expert manager!
Trump’s magical thinking stems from his inability to recognize that some of the consequences of his actions may injure himself as well as others. He seems fixated on the potential rewards of his efforts without weighing the costs. Some observers have tried to excuse Trump’s magical thinking by noting that his missteps are a result of his inexperience. But even when he has surrounded himself with experts who caution him about negative consequences, he has either ignored their advice or sought out others, less expert, who endorse his recklessness.
As an inexperienced gambling casino owner, Trump hired one of the best casino managers in the industry to guide him. Despite this expert’s advice, Trump chose the strategy of attracting wealthy customers who gamble large amounts of money. Experts in the casino industry consider this strategy to be profitable, but too risky. They prefer the less risky path of attracting well-to-do slots players who lose their money but keep returning. Ignoring his expert’s advice, Trump lured a wealthy gambler to Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino by offering him a $6 million line of credit. The player wound up taking Trump for almost $6.5 million. Trump fired his expert manager!
One of the first dubious acts that Trump did as President was to try to get his Director of the FBI, James Comey, to drop an espionage investigation of his National Security Advisor, Michael Flynn. Flynn had alarmed the FBI because he lied to the FBI about a contact with Russian foreign minister. The Russians, of course, were aware of this lie, and thus, could have subjected to Flynn to blackmail. After Comey refused to drop the Flynn investigation, Trump fired Comey. One explanation for Trump’s attempt to subvert the law is that he was unaware that career public servants take an oath to serve the U.S. and its Constitution. According to news reports, Trump asked his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, if firing Comey was a good idea. But Kushner was also a novice in the workings of government. This suggests that he did not want reliable advice. Instead, Trump seemed to want someone who would validate his idea about firing Comey.
Another example of Trump’s intellectual shortcoming is his attempt to re-balance trade with China through the imposition of tariffs. Trump claims that U.S. trade suffers through China’s theft of intellectual property and the provision of subsidies to Chinese firms. Tariffs are placed on the goods arriving from China to the U.S. And, despite Trump’s incorrect claim that China pays these tariffs, U.S. importers pay them. These costs are then passed on to U.S. consumers. These tariffs cost U.S. buyers $3.2 billion per month in added taxes as of the end of 2018. In addition to consumer costs, businesses pay higher prices to import parts from China due to retaliatory tariffs. At the same time, U.S. farmers have lost soybean and other agricultural markets in China, Brazil, and Argentina. Trump’s tariff war with China has cost consumers, businesses, and farmers billions of dollars and achieved virtually no benefits.
Trump’s magical thinking has been on full display during the coronavirus pandemic. He failed to contain the pandemic because he could not pay close enough attention to the intelligence briefings that warned him. The inability to pay attention, coupled with his reluctance to read the Presidential Daily Brief, may signal attention deficit disorder. But that disorder does not explain the magical thinking that has characterized Trump’s handling of the virus. After frittering away the time he could have used preparing for the spread of COVID-19, Trump was unable to ensure that healthcare workers had personal protective equipment, ventilators for their patients, and other the resources needed to care for patients. He did not assure that testing equipment was available to re-open the economy. Instead, Trump was forced to carry out an unspoken policy of allowing the infection to spread. Once 60 to 80 percent of the population has been infected, further transmission becomes very unlikely – the “herd” will have grown immune. Achieving herd immunity naturally has rather serious drawbacks. While about 80 percent of those infected will recover, the 20 percent who will not recover, estimated to be as many as 2 million people, is something of a crapshoot. The elderly and those with underlying illnesses (e.g., hypertension, heart disease, obesity) are most at risk. Some young and healthy people, however, have died; some of the ones who have recovered recount the pain and ferocity of the disease.
Trump’s thinking on COVID-19 is saturated with more fantasy than reason. Trump, reasonably, wants to “open the economy” as quickly possible. But he seems totally unaware that the economy cannot be opened without lessening the fear consumers by addressing the public health issues of the pandemic. Despite expert advice to the contrary, Trump persists in not being able to anticipate the adverse consequences of trying to open the economy without tamping down COVID-19. Trump has a peculiar view on widespread testing and isolation for coronavirus infection. Trump has said that he views the primary consequence of testing is to drive the increase in COVID-19 cases. He seems unable to understand that testing workers can lessen the fears of consumers and speed the opening of the economy. Nonetheless, Trump makes extensive use of testing to ensure his own safety in the White House. Trump’s inability to weigh alternatives and heed expert advice crushes any ability he might otherwise have to manage the government’s response to the pandemic.
Another example of Trump’s intellectual shortcoming is his attempt to re-balance trade with China through the imposition of tariffs. Trump claims that U.S. trade suffers through China’s theft of intellectual property and the provision of subsidies to Chinese firms. Tariffs are placed on the goods arriving from China to the U.S. And, despite Trump’s incorrect claim that China pays these tariffs, U.S. importers pay them. These costs are then passed on to U.S. consumers. These tariffs cost U.S. buyers $3.2 billion per month in added taxes as of the end of 2018. In addition to consumer costs, businesses pay higher prices to import parts from China due to retaliatory tariffs. At the same time, U.S. farmers have lost soybean and other agricultural markets in China, Brazil, and Argentina. Trump’s tariff war with China has cost consumers, businesses, and farmers billions of dollars and achieved virtually no benefits.
Trump’s magical thinking has been on full display during the coronavirus pandemic. He failed to contain the pandemic because he could not pay close enough attention to the intelligence briefings that warned him. The inability to pay attention, coupled with his reluctance to read the Presidential Daily Brief, may signal attention deficit disorder. But that disorder does not explain the magical thinking that has characterized Trump’s handling of the virus. After frittering away the time he could have used preparing for the spread of COVID-19, Trump was unable to ensure that healthcare workers had personal protective equipment, ventilators for their patients, and other the resources needed to care for patients. He did not assure that testing equipment was available to re-open the economy. Instead, Trump was forced to carry out an unspoken policy of allowing the infection to spread. Once 60 to 80 percent of the population has been infected, further transmission becomes very unlikely – the “herd” will have grown immune. Achieving herd immunity naturally has rather serious drawbacks. While about 80 percent of those infected will recover, the 20 percent who will not recover, estimated to be as many as 2 million people, is something of a crapshoot. The elderly and those with underlying illnesses (e.g., hypertension, heart disease, obesity) are most at risk. Some young and healthy people, however, have died; some of the ones who have recovered recount the pain and ferocity of the disease.
Trump’s thinking on COVID-19 is saturated with more fantasy than reason. Trump, reasonably, wants to “open the economy” as quickly possible. But he seems totally unaware that the economy cannot be opened without lessening the fear consumers by addressing the public health issues of the pandemic. Despite expert advice to the contrary, Trump persists in not being able to anticipate the adverse consequences of trying to open the economy without tamping down COVID-19. Trump has a peculiar view on widespread testing and isolation for coronavirus infection. Trump has said that he views the primary consequence of testing is to drive the increase in COVID-19 cases. He seems unable to understand that testing workers can lessen the fears of consumers and speed the opening of the economy. Nonetheless, Trump makes extensive use of testing to ensure his own safety in the White House. Trump’s inability to weigh alternatives and heed expert advice crushes any ability he might otherwise have to manage the government’s response to the pandemic.
Selfishness and Lack of Empathy
Vanity Fair Trump has demonstrated that his primary concern is himself both before and after becoming President. Even when his conduct is not corrupt or criminal, it is guided by a desire benefit himself. Trump has hidden his selfishness behind tribal favoritism. His constant message is we “white Christians” deserve more than African Americans, Asians, and others because of who we are. An unspoken part of this message is I deserve more because of who I am.
In 2015 Trump’s ratings for Celebrity Apprentice were declining. Some observers believed that he decided to announce for the Presidency to avoid the humiliation of his show being cancelled. In 2012 he had used his announcement of a run for the Presidency to get a contract for the renewal of the show. If the show could not be saved by repeating the trick, Trump had every reason to believe, a Presidential run would enhance his brand. In either case, Trump saw a campaign as merely a way to boost his own image, not serve his party or the country. As President, Trump has used the presidency to benefit himself at the cost of the taxpayers in several ways. He has played about 217 rounds of golf every five days. This amounts to about 250 days of golf or over 20 percent of his term, as of March 2020. These outings are estimated to have cost the cost payers at least $105 million considering the costs of Air Force One and the security arrangements.
In 2015 Trump’s ratings for Celebrity Apprentice were declining. Some observers believed that he decided to announce for the Presidency to avoid the humiliation of his show being cancelled. In 2012 he had used his announcement of a run for the Presidency to get a contract for the renewal of the show. If the show could not be saved by repeating the trick, Trump had every reason to believe, a Presidential run would enhance his brand. In either case, Trump saw a campaign as merely a way to boost his own image, not serve his party or the country. As President, Trump has used the presidency to benefit himself at the cost of the taxpayers in several ways. He has played about 217 rounds of golf every five days. This amounts to about 250 days of golf or over 20 percent of his term, as of March 2020. These outings are estimated to have cost the cost payers at least $105 million considering the costs of Air Force One and the security arrangements.
Also, after becoming President, and contrary to the advice of ethics lawyers, Trump held onto the Washington hotel he had acquired from the General Services Administration prior to becoming President. Trump leased the Old Post Office Pavilion from the General Services Administration and then turned it into a 263-bedroom hotel. Selling the hotel would have ensured that his ownership would not have become or appear to be a conflict of interest. Instead, Trump allowed his hotel to become a watering hole for officials of foreign governments and companies seeking favors from Trump and his administration. More importantly, Trump’s failure to follow norms like avoiding the appearance of a conflict of interest, has undermined the independence of executive agencies like the Department of Justice, Homeland Security, and other intelligence agencies. As a result, the assessments of executive agencies have lost their credibility. Now, Trump could have used the agencies’ independent judgements to buttress his positions on the proper response to coronavirus, if he had not trashed them.
Trump’s tribal favoritism is exemplified by his “tax cut” legislation, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. This bill overwhelmingly benefited Trump and his cronies. The top 20 percent of earners received 60 percent of the tax benefits while the top 1 percent of earners received 17 percent of the total benefit. Moreover, residents of states that do not support Trump (California, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois) were limited in the mortgage deductions they could claim. And, despite Trump’s claim to the contrary, the bill did not help the economy. The law brought in less revenue, exploded the deficit, and did not significantly lower unemployment or raise wages.
Along with his selfishness, Trump seems incapable of feeling or displaying empathy. Instead, of expressing compassion for others, Trump can only show concern on himself. Trump hired Roy Cohn, a ruthless attorney and political hitman, to help defend his family’s business against a Department of Justice racial discrimination charge. Although the Justice Department won the case, Trump became Cohn’s friend and mentee. Trump was impressed with the way Cohn confronted the Justice Department, despite overwhelming evidence that the Trumps discriminated against African Americans. Over the decade or so they were associated, Trump apparently learned three things from his mentor. Cohn always acted as if he were victorious, even when defeated; he befriended gossip columnists and other news people to try and shape the news; he never settled; and he always counter-attacked and sought to intimidate, if only with bluster. Despite their close relationship, Cohn described Trump as “pissing ice water.” Although Trump attended Cohn’s funeral, he did not participate in it. Perhaps Cohn’s family discovered that the diamond cuff links Trump had presented Cohn with were fake.
As President, Trump has also failed to demonstrate empathy for the suffering of Americans. When Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria, Trump visited the island, presumably to comfort the victims like other presidents. Unlike other Presidents who were able to empathize with survivors, Trump’s visit was a failure. Even before Trump arrived in arrived in Puerto Rico, he precipitated a quarrel with San Juan’s mayor by disputing her observations that residents were not receiving promised federal aid. After arriving in Puerto Rico, Trump belittled the island’s suffering by declaring that the residents did not suffer a real catastrophe like Katrina—the deadliest hurricane in U.S. history since 1928. During his brief stay, Trump repeatedly claimed that the Puerto Rico’s preexisting debts were causing him to think hard about paying for recovery efforts. After 11 congregants were shot and killed by an anti-Semitic terrorist at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Trump’s first reaction was to counter cries for stricter gun control by calling for better security. On his “sympathy visit” to Tree of Life, he observed that the shooting was especially hard on him as President because he had to watch this “sort of thing.”
During this pandemic Trump’s willingness to risk the health and lives of Americans to boost his chances for re-election shows both his selfishness and lack of empathy. In a recent poll Trump’s approval lagged Vice-President Biden’s approval on every issue except handling the economy. Various media sources report that Trump and his campaign officials see only one path to victory, spurring enough of an economic recovery so that Trump can argue that he rebuilt the economy once and can do it again. Trump has shown that for him the coronavirus pandemic represents an obstacle to re-election and an opportunity to energize his base supporters – not what it is - a dismal, frightening event for most Americans.
Trump’s tribal favoritism is exemplified by his “tax cut” legislation, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. This bill overwhelmingly benefited Trump and his cronies. The top 20 percent of earners received 60 percent of the tax benefits while the top 1 percent of earners received 17 percent of the total benefit. Moreover, residents of states that do not support Trump (California, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois) were limited in the mortgage deductions they could claim. And, despite Trump’s claim to the contrary, the bill did not help the economy. The law brought in less revenue, exploded the deficit, and did not significantly lower unemployment or raise wages.
Along with his selfishness, Trump seems incapable of feeling or displaying empathy. Instead, of expressing compassion for others, Trump can only show concern on himself. Trump hired Roy Cohn, a ruthless attorney and political hitman, to help defend his family’s business against a Department of Justice racial discrimination charge. Although the Justice Department won the case, Trump became Cohn’s friend and mentee. Trump was impressed with the way Cohn confronted the Justice Department, despite overwhelming evidence that the Trumps discriminated against African Americans. Over the decade or so they were associated, Trump apparently learned three things from his mentor. Cohn always acted as if he were victorious, even when defeated; he befriended gossip columnists and other news people to try and shape the news; he never settled; and he always counter-attacked and sought to intimidate, if only with bluster. Despite their close relationship, Cohn described Trump as “pissing ice water.” Although Trump attended Cohn’s funeral, he did not participate in it. Perhaps Cohn’s family discovered that the diamond cuff links Trump had presented Cohn with were fake.
As President, Trump has also failed to demonstrate empathy for the suffering of Americans. When Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria, Trump visited the island, presumably to comfort the victims like other presidents. Unlike other Presidents who were able to empathize with survivors, Trump’s visit was a failure. Even before Trump arrived in arrived in Puerto Rico, he precipitated a quarrel with San Juan’s mayor by disputing her observations that residents were not receiving promised federal aid. After arriving in Puerto Rico, Trump belittled the island’s suffering by declaring that the residents did not suffer a real catastrophe like Katrina—the deadliest hurricane in U.S. history since 1928. During his brief stay, Trump repeatedly claimed that the Puerto Rico’s preexisting debts were causing him to think hard about paying for recovery efforts. After 11 congregants were shot and killed by an anti-Semitic terrorist at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Trump’s first reaction was to counter cries for stricter gun control by calling for better security. On his “sympathy visit” to Tree of Life, he observed that the shooting was especially hard on him as President because he had to watch this “sort of thing.”
During this pandemic Trump’s willingness to risk the health and lives of Americans to boost his chances for re-election shows both his selfishness and lack of empathy. In a recent poll Trump’s approval lagged Vice-President Biden’s approval on every issue except handling the economy. Various media sources report that Trump and his campaign officials see only one path to victory, spurring enough of an economic recovery so that Trump can argue that he rebuilt the economy once and can do it again. Trump has shown that for him the coronavirus pandemic represents an obstacle to re-election and an opportunity to energize his base supporters – not what it is - a dismal, frightening event for most Americans.
Conclusion
Donald Trump has a long history of corruption, magical thinking, and selfishness. Moreover, his lack of empathy has normalized the suffering of Americans when he should have helped them heal. He is not going to change, even if, as President, he is desperately needed to lead the fight against this pandemic. We are helpless to force him to do the right thing. But that does not mean we should retreat into the pathology of lethargy and depression. We can hope we survive for five more months. And we can work to help ensure that Trump is not re-elected.
Donald Trump has a long history of corruption, magical thinking, and selfishness. Moreover, his lack of empathy has normalized the suffering of Americans when he should have helped them heal. He is not going to change, even if, as President, he is desperately needed to lead the fight against this pandemic. We are helpless to force him to do the right thing. But that does not mean we should retreat into the pathology of lethargy and depression. We can hope we survive for five more months. And we can work to help ensure that Trump is not re-elected.