During his Monday press conference in the White House Rose Garden, President Donald Trump claimed his administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic had been “incredible,” and he added that the blame for any failures fall on “somebody” from “a long time ago.”
What? Could you run that one by us again, sir?
“It could have been stopped and it could have been stopped short, but somebody a long time ago, it seems, decided not to do it that way. And the whole world is suffering because of it.”
As HuffPost notes, Trump was likely referring to China in his remarks:
“’We are not happy with China,’ he said, adding that the spread of the infection could have been ‘stopped at the source’ if Beijing had taken earlier action.”
Then again, the president could have easily been talking about himself and his administration, which repeatedly slow-walked the federal response to COVID-19, resulting in the deaths of 56,000 Americans so far. Consider a quick look back at recent history:
- February 26: Trump claimed the number of U.S. cases of coronavirus would be “down close to zero.”
- February 27: The president declared the virus would vanish “like a miracle.”
All of this led many on social media to remind the president that it sure sounds like he’s the “somebody” who failed miserably:
The buck stops with “somebody a long time ago” https://t.co/R84nJHO1OQ
— Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) April 27, 2020
“Somebody a long time ago could have stopped this?”
Who is he talking about?
Is it a rare moment or self-reflection or another shot at the Chinese, @BarackObama or “nasty” governors?— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) April 27, 2020
Somebody = Trump
A long time ago = February
Now. Ask him about bleach. https://t.co/DrDlZt0PZY— Steve Marmel (@Marmel) April 27, 2020
The disease “could have been stopped, it could have been stopped a long time ago. But somebody decided not to do it that way.”
Sounded like a confession.
— Helen Kennedy (@HelenKennedy) April 27, 2020
I don’t think I’d call a few months back “a long time ago,” but otherwise, excellent points here by President Somebody. https://t.co/CdQQ7reR2A
— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) April 27, 2020
As is so often the case with Donald Trump, blame always rests elsewhere because he’s perfect and never makes a mistake.
Featured Image Via Twitter
