President Donald Trump gave himself a ten out of ten rating for his response to the current pandemic that's upended daily life in the United States.
Medical experts, governors, and private citizens largely disagreed, citing his initial dismissal of the highly contagious virus and his reluctance to invoke federal powers to slow the spread.
Even officials within Trump's own administration are pointing out the President's failures in the face of the pandemic.
According to a report from Caitlin Owens at Axios, one senior Health and Human Services official said:
"By waiting to fully appreciate and acknowledge this as a once-in-a-lifetime crisis, this was a colossal missed opportunity."
Donald Trump spent precious weeks dismissing the threat posed by the virus at the beginning of the outbreak, promising it would disappear like a "miracle."
When there were only confirmed cases in the United States, Trump promised the number would go down to zero, and that the virus was no more threatening than the flu.
With nearly 60,000 cases nationwide only weeks later, businesses across the country have had to shut their doors to slow the spread of the virus, resulting in the sudden unemployment of millions.
Evidence is mounting that Trump ignored the warnings of experts when the damage posed by the pandemic could've been offset by federal action.
Trump's ineptitude has been laid bare as the virus's peak looms.
Some took issue with the official's characterization of the failure as a "missed opportunity."
It remains to be seen just how colossal this failure will prove to be.
@WhiteHouse/X
