Exactly 17 years ago Friday, former President George W. Bush appeared on the USS Abraham Lincoln with a large banner saying "Mission Accomplished." Bush was announcing the end to the war in Iraq. In fact, the war continued for nearly ten more years, when former President Barack Obama announced an official end to the war, Dec. 15, 2011.
Today, it seems President Donald Trump is following the "mission accomplished" banner with the coronavirus crisis, noted MSNBC host Chuck Todd during his Thursday show.
"The president is dialing back public briefings with health officials after those around him said that they weren't helping him politically," said Todd at the top of his show. "He's been pushing scientists to develop a vaccine in a project called 'Operation Warp Speed.' He seems to be feeling his way through this crisis, at times he's whiplashed between accepting the reality of what's in front of him while at times denying it. So far the president seems trapped in a cycle of what we've called mission accomplished moments on re-opening the country, and on treating the virus."
Trump has said that the virus will "leave" and "disappear" even without a vaccine. Thursday he allowed the "Stay at home" guidelines to expire as some states begin to reopen. Cases of COVID-19, however, are still increasing.
Watch the report below:
