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Trump Sees His Handling of COVID-19 as Path to Reelection

Patsy Widakuswara

   WHITE HOUSE - As the coronavirus pandemic ravages the United States,
   President Donald Trump tries to project an image of a credible leader
   in control at a time of crisis.

   "We're at war with a deadly virus," Trump said on Tuesday, during his
   almost daily televised briefings from the White House. "Success in this
   fight will require the full absolute measure of our collective
   strength, love and devotion," he added.

   Last year, the Trump administration abandoned the daily briefing -- a
   long-held White House practice. But now that the pandemic has forced
   the Trump campaign to stop holding rallies, press briefings have become
   a substitute for them.

   Recent briefings by Trump and his coronavirus task force have attracted
   an average audience of 8.5 million on cable television news programs.

     Because the "Ratings" of my News Conferences etc. are so high,
     "Bachelor finale, Monday Night Football type numbers" according to
     the [1]@nytimes, the Lamestream Media is going CRAZY. "Trump is
     reaching too many people, we must stop him." said one lunatic. See
     you at 5:00 P.M.!
     -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) [2]March 29, 2020

   The president boasted about it on Twitter, prompting some observers to
   accuse him of trying to politicize the crisis.

   "We shouldn't care what the ratings are for a presidential briefing,"
   said Shannon O'Brien, a professor of political science at the
   University of Texas at Austin. She accused Trump of being more
   interested in his ratings rather than the rising coronavirus cases and
   deaths occurring in the United States.

   Trump is certainly using the coronavirus briefings to advance his own
   re-election cause, said Larry Sabato from the University of Virginia's
   Center for Politics. "The pandemic is a black hole -- everything has to
   relate to it to get TV time, and Trump is aware of this," he said.

References

   1. https://twitter.com/nytimes?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
   2. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1244309931874017280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

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