Trump was supposed to be briefing about coronavirus testing, but instead, he pushed a conspiracy theory about virus mortality rates.
The exchange:
Q: Mr. President, yesterday you retweeted someone who alleged that Democrats had quoted, quote inflated the mortality rate of the coronavirus by underreporting. Do you believe there’s a conspiracy theory regarding that?
Trump: I can only say what we’re doing. We’re reporting very accurately. If you look at other countries, other countries are not. You can look at China, you can look at numerous countries where I don’t think those are right I can only say what we’re doing. It’s important to us to do accurate reporting.
Video:
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Trump endorses the idea that there is a conspiracy against him on coronavirus mortality reporting. pic.twitter.com/rcTLHv7zgP
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) April 27, 2020
Trump didn’t disavow the conspiracy theory that he retweeted. He did not say that there was no conspiracy against him on coronavirus mortality rates. He went off on a rant about other countries not accurately reporting their numbers. There is widespread consensus among experts that the US numbers are not accurate and could be underestimating the death toll by 50% or more.
Trump thinks that the virus mortality reports are a conspiracy against him because when Trump can’t win, his first move is always to claim that the situation is rigged.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
