The United States surpassed another grim milestone on Tuesday, as virus deaths in the nation surpassed 150 thousand.
That same day, President Donald Trump held a press briefing to update Americans on his response to the virus.
Just hours before, Trump had retweeted several inaccurate posts regarding the virus. Most notably, he posted a bizarre press conference from the far-right media outlet Breitbart, in which people claiming to be licensed doctors made false assertions that masks don't work in slowing the spread of the virus and that a cure for it has already been found.
One of the most prominently featured doctors in the video Trump shared was Stella Imannuel, M.D., who believes that demons have sex with people while they're sleeping, that a vaccine is being developed to stop people from being religious, and that some members of government are secretly reptilian. She's since been doubling down on these beliefs on Twitter.
Twitter deleted the tweet due to its false information, but Trump still faced numerous questions about it at the briefing.
Trump claimed he was frustrated that "nobody likes" him, but they trust National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, whom Trump sought to discredit with his tweets.
The CNN chyron following Trump's comments was emblematic of Trump's response to the crisis as a whole.
Putting this chyron in the record books. pic.twitter.com/cQc1x8w1Fd
— Nathan McDermott (@natemcdermott) July 28, 2020
The chyron read:
"TRUMP AS U.S. NEARS 150,000 DEATHS: 'NOBODY LIKES ME'"
A top criticism put toward the President is that throughout the pandemic, he's been more concerned with the public's perception of him than the public's safety.
Throughout the early stages, Trump resisted expanded testing measures and adequate safety precautions in hopes of preserving the Obama-era economy which he believed crucial to his reelection. The President insisted on reviving his raucous campaign rallies in cities like Tulsa, Oklahoma. Health officials in the city later blamed his rally for spikes in the virus seen shortly after.
Trump infamously had peaceful protesters removed by force from outside of the White House in order for him to take a photo outside of Saint John's church with a borrowed Bible.
People widely agreed that the chyron, tragically, got it right.
I couldn't believe when the words "Fauci has higher ratings" came out of his mouth. And when he said "nobody likes me" I was astonished he had any self awareness.
— Donna Steinhorn (@coachdonna) July 29, 2020
I'll frame it for my mantle.
— MaTT FLaMMaBLe (@MaTTFLaMMaBLe) July 28, 2020
'Nevermind the dead, have you seen my poll numbers?" - DJT
— DeezNutz 🇺🇲 🇲🇽 (@DeezNut64325575) July 28, 2020
The chyron writer is a genius.
— E. Williamson 🌿 (@DeciduousOne) July 28, 2020
he notices the most important things in his life.
— _Angi (@0172pop) July 29, 2020
In some ways, people thought Trump had a point.
COVID-45 does, occasionally, tell the truth. Almost always by accident, and it's a singularly rare event, but it has been known to happen.
— ian2 (@ianinamerica) July 29, 2020
In fairness it might be the only point on which he and I agree.
— Merrill Foster (@counselorfoster) July 29, 2020
What gave it away? Or should I say, it took you this long to figure it out
— Roger Kissinger (@tvnuzdirector) July 29, 2020
Sooner or later he had to say something factually correct, if only by accident.
— Freeman Hippie (@Freemanhippy) July 29, 2020
Hey, I agree with the president on something
— Chad Briggs (@ChadMBriggs) July 29, 2020
The President's average approval rating hovers at around 40 percent.
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