Trump, Asked What He Would Say To Worried Americans: "I Say That You're A Terrible Reporter." ... Told No 'Magic Drug" Exists To Cure Covid-19, Trump: "I Disagree. I'm A Smart Guy."

Donald Trump must be removed from office immediately, for the safety and health of the American people.

Peter Alexander (NBC News), White House press conference, March 20, 2020:

What do you say to Americans who are scared, though? Nearly 200 dead, 14,000 who are sick [actually, 233 deaths and 18,100+ cases], millions, as you witnessed, who are scared right now -- what do you say to Americans who are watching you right now, who are scared?

Donald Trump:

I say that you're a terrible reporter, that's what I say. I think it's a very nasty question. And I think it's a very bad signal that you're putting out to the American people. The American people are looking for answers and they're looking for hope. And you're doing sensationalism and the same with NBC and Concast [sic]. I don't call it -- I don't call it Comcast, I call it Concast, for whom you work. Let me just say something. That's really bad reporting. And you ought to get back to reporting instead of sensationalism. Let's see if it works. It might and it might not. I happen to feel good about it, but who knows? I've been right a lot. Let's see what happens.

Larry Edgeworth, 61, one of Alexander's colleagues at NBC News died yesterday of Covid-19. Edgeworth worked at NBC as an audio technician for 25 years.



Vox reported that Trump did not lash out at Fox News reporter John Roberts, who actually started the line of questioning.

CNN's John King called Trump's response "bullshit".

What the president did to Peter Alexander was reprehensible. The people are looking for answers. They do want hope, they do want support ... That was a very fair question. ... [T]his is a Trump trademark. It was striking that this came — forgive me — this bullshit attack on fake news came just moments after the Secretary of State said the American people need to be careful about where they get their information, to go to sources they can trust.

It was a softball question - that's Alexander's own description of his question - and Trump flipped out. And he did it more than once:

Q: Is it possible that your impulse to put a positive things on things might be giving Americans a false sense of hope?

Trump: No, I don't think so ... such a lovely question ...

Q: Do you think it's appropriate to attack reporters at a time like this?

Trump: I think that Peter is not a good journalist when it comes to fairness.

Of course, Trump's chief concern is that he is given the credit he believes he deserves: "We haven't been given the credit we've deserved."

Trump has proven incapable of carrying out any aspect of his job. It is gross negligence by the US government to allow him to remain in office. It is within House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's authority to request a 72-hour mental health hold on Trump.

Bandy X. Lee, a professor of psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine, told Salon in December 2019:

[Pelosi] has the right to have him submit to an involuntary evaluation ... I am beginning to believe that a mental health hold, which we have tried to avoid, will become inevitable. ... This was why more than 800 mental health professionals petitioned Congress to consult with us, since, without intervention, this kind of crisis was a matter of time [the assassination of an Iranian general], not just a possibility. ... [Trump] is extremely drawn to actions that would help him appear as if he has mental capacity ... What we do not expect from someone who lacks mental capacity is rational, reality-based decision making that is non-impulsive, non-reckless, and cognizant of consequences.

As Trump ranted, he became more angry and sounded more demented. At the end of the above quote, he was referring to chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, two malaria drugs. Right-wing websites have been claiming these drugs can cure coronavirus. That is a lie. There is, as yet, no cure for coronavirus. But Trump, who as we all know had a "super-genius" for an uncle (this uncle died 35 years ago), is putting his faith these untested and unproven remedies (because taking real action, while making sense, remains beyond his abilities).

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, cautioned that any "evidence" in support of these drugs is merely "anecdotal" and "was not done in a controlled clinical trial". Trump refused to let that scientific information stop him:

I'm probably more of a fan of that — maybe than anybody. But I'm a big fan, and we'll see what happens. We all understand what the doctor said is 100 percent correct: It's early. But I have seen things that are impressive. We'll see. We're gonna know soon. [Reporters questioned him, saying there is no "magic drug" for Covid-19] I disagree. Maybe and maybe not. ... I am a man that comes from a very positive school when it comes to, in particular, one of these drugs. ... I feel good about it. That's all it is: Just a feeling. I'm a smart guy. ... I've been right a lot.

Ho-lee shit.

It's unsettling that an innocuous question about reassuring Americans in a time of unprecedented crisis can be so triggering for Trump, who must now know, somewhere in his mind, that he is out of his depth and powerless to stop this virus. He cannot fire the virus and he cannot run away and hide from his massive failures and inaction. And he's a "big fan" of a drug he never heard of before yesterday and could never hope to correctly pronounce.

News: Trump has ordered 500 million masks. But they will not be delivered for 18 months. That's October 2021.

Also: The CDC wanted to recommend that anyone over 60 remain inside their homes whenever possible, but was told not to say that by Trump administration officials.

Let's not forget what Lesley Stahl, 60 Minutes correspondent, said in May 2018:

[In July 2016, right before the Republican convention] I met with him in Trump Tower. And he really is the same off camera that he is on camera, exactly the same. And at one point, he started to attack the press. And it's just me and my boss and him – he has a huge office – and he's attacking the press. And there were no cameras, there was nothing going on. And I said, "You know, that is getting tired, why are you doing this? You're doing it over and over and it's boring, it's time to end that, you've won the nomination, and why do you keep hammering at this?" And he said: "You know why I do it? I do it to discredit you all and demean you all so when you write negative stories about me no one will believe you." He said that. So put that in your head for a minute.