On MSNBC Tuesday, host Ari Melber walked through the way President Donald Trump has tried to deflect blame for COVID-19 deaths — and how different it is from the way past presidents handled national tragedies.
"This is a sad topic, but it's not only sad, it's necessary," said Melber. "Because avoiding the reality and impact of America's growing death toll right now wouldn't honor the people we've lost, nor advance healing nor the unity we need ... we want to turn with you to lessons from history, how past presidents have confronted national tragedies and let our nation, not only on the tangible part issuing a policy response paying for remedy, but how people have stepped up to the intangible, consoling, grieving, praying."
One of the examples Melber offered was of Trump's immediate predecessor.
"President Obama, who was known to avoid much public emotion, shared his own grief, choked up when speaking about [a] violent attack during his tenure, a mass shooting of first graders at Newtown," said Melber, playing a clip of Obama saying, "From every family who never imagined that their loved one would be taken from our lives by a bullet from a gun, every time I think about those kids, it gets me mad."
By contrast, Melber noted, "in a month of virus briefings, Donald Trump spoke for a total cumulative of 13 hours discussing the virus and the government response, two hours attacking his critics, 45 minutes praising his administration. But just under five minutes total expressing any condolence for victims or grieving ... today the U.S. death toll surged over 90,000, and President Trump is talking about never forgetting the dead, a sentiment that he still immediately mixed with blaming the, quote, 'people that caused the problem.'"
"We can never forget all of the people that have been left behind, that have died for some reason that should have never happened, should have never happened," said Trump in the clip. "You know that. I know that. And the people that caused the problem, they know that too. It's too bad."
"The sound you hear is the sound of the president of the United States darkly suggesting 'someone else' did this and they know they have some guilty failure of awareness. That's claiming to pay tribute to the dead," said Melber. "This is a total contrast to other presidents, to other past American leaders in both parties. While this is not the only thing going on right now, if you do find yourself at home thinking this is not normal, we should not act like this is normal, you're right. It's not."
Watch below:
