Months ago, the scandal of the week from President Donald Trump was when he used a permanent marker to edit the path of a hurricane that he then presented to millions of Americans in the Oval Office. He made the edit in order to claim he was right in erroneously claiming a few days before that Hurricane Dorian was heading to Alabama.
That wasn't the start of the President's love affair with permanent markers. He's become infamous for signing legislation with them and making ostentatious notes with them.
These notes are often bold and simplistic enough that any professional photographer can capture what they say.
Such was the case with the President's latest briefing on the COVID-19 cases sweeping across the United States.
There have been over 10,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19—or coronavirus—in the United States since Trump dismissed the threat posed by the virus as a hoax last month.
Since then, schools across the country have been shut down, as well as restaurants, bars, churches, and other non-essential businesses.
But rather than prioritizing a response that will assure the nation in one of its most trying times in recent memory, the President has begun repeatedly referring to COVID-19 as "Chinese Virus," in a move that's worsened an uptick in attacks on Asian Americans since the virus first emerged in Wuhan, China.
Asian Americans are no more at risk for the virus than other Americans residing in the United States, nor does being of Asian descent make one more susceptible to catching the virus.
Nevertheless, it doesn't look like the President intends to give up yet another racist dog whistle for his base to applaud.
The notes from today's press briefing were there in black and white.
Yes, Trump had crossed out the "Corona" in "coronavirus," and replaced it with "Chinese."
People were livid at the President's insistence on using racism to distract from his own failures during a pandemic that's upended everyday life for Americans across the country.
People saw it for what it is:
This Twitter user speaks for many:
@PreetBharara/X
@RepBrendanBoyle/X
@twesq/Bluesky
@christopherharris/Bluesky
@evangelinewarren/X
@FrankC164/X
AMC