[Elephant③] Desperate 'Economic President' Trump for US Lockdown Lift... Ignoring Conflict and Chaos?

Leaders trapped by Corona. As the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) crisis prolongs, we focus on global leaders who have sparked controversy due to delayed responses and inappropriate conduct or remarks. We examine the impact of undesirable responses during a crisis when leadership is most needed, and anticipate the trajectories of leaders whose positions are shaken as well as political changes in various countries.

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] "34 days during the pandemic: There was a desperate attempt by U.S. President Donald Trump to reopen America." - The Washington Post (WP)

With the U.S. presidential election coming up in November, COVID-19 has put President Trump to the test. Until early this year, no one expected the pandemic to determine the outcome of the U.S. election. On January 21, the first case was reported, and just 98 days later, on the 27th of last month, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the U.S. surpassed one million. As the economic damage grew uncontrollably, over the past six weeks more than 30 million people?equivalent to 18.4% of the entire U.S. workforce?lost their jobs.

President Trump's reelection likely hinges on ending COVID-19 and restarting economic activities. Having repeatedly emphasized his achievements as the 'economic president' to boost his reelection chances, it seems crucial for him that COVID-19 does not resurge and that the economy recovers safely. This explains why he has continuously called for reopening the economy even amid the pandemic.

On the 2nd (local time), WP reported that from March 29, when President Trump chose to extend social distancing guidelines instead of reopening the economy on Easter, until the 30th of last month when federal social distancing guidelines were lifted, he desperately worked for 34 days to restart economic activities. WP stated that Trump and his aides used scenario analyses from the White House to reinforce skepticism about the severity of COVID-19, focusing more on strengthening economic reopening rather than responding to the catastrophic health crisis.

◆ Leaders fueling conflict and distrust amid crisis = Even during the major crisis of COVID-19, President Trump did not hesitate to reveal conflicts and divisions as before. Especially under the pretext of protecting the economy he built, he clashed with various sectors over reopening economic activities. Last month, he had heated debates with governors over the authority to lift lockdowns and resume factory operations. There were also rumors of dismissals as conflicts arose between Trump and key figures such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and Health Secretary Alex Azar, who play central roles in managing the COVID-19 crisis.

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

On that day, President Trump tweeted calling the armed protesters who occupied the Michigan state legislature demanding the lifting of lockdowns "very good people." On the 30th of last month, armed protesters entered the Michigan state capitol, forcing lawmakers to wear bulletproof vests, but Trump appeared to support the protesters' demands to lift the lockdown. CNN noted, "President Trump sided with a small group of protesters fighting against Democratic governors' travel restrictions," and warned, "Trump is making a dangerous bet for reelection."

President Trump also sparked controversy over the design of stimulus checks issued to citizens to mitigate economic damage from COVID-19. Adults receive $1,200 and children $500 via checks or online transfers, but the inclusion of Trump's name in the memo section caused issues. Democrats strongly opposed this, calling it no different from an election campaign.

◆ Briefings used like campaigns... scaled back after disinfectant controversy = President Trump also clashed with the media. Although conflicts have existed since his inauguration, after the COVID-19 outbreak, his frequent attendance at daily White House task force (TF) briefings led to more disputes. Trump rarely appeared at TF meetings but almost never missed briefings, which critics said he used as de facto reelection campaign rallies.

However, many evaluations suggest that Trump's inaccurate answers and blunt rhetoric negatively affected the COVID-19 crisis situation. WP reported that from the 16th of last month, during 35 briefings, Trump spoke for 13 hours, spending 2 hours attacking others and 35 minutes praising himself and his administration. Time spent mourning victims was less than 5 minutes. The New York Times (NYT) reported that voices within the Republican Party say the briefings seriously damage Trump's political standing.

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Especially, Trump's remarks about 'injecting disinfectants' shocked the U.S. On the 23rd of last month, he said there is research showing bleach kills the virus in saliva within 5 minutes and disinfectants kill the virus even faster, then asked, "Is there a way to inject disinfectants into the body? It would be interesting to see what happens if it gets into the lungs."

On the same day, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tweeted a warning not to misuse disinfectants, and New York City warned the next day, the 24th, that ingesting, injecting, or inhaling bleach or disinfectants can be very harmful to the body. However, reports emerged that poison control centers received more calls than usual after his remarks. Following the controversy, Trump expressed anger for several days and canceled briefings or refused to take questions.

◆ Declining approval ratings, impact on reelection... where are the world's leaders? = President Trump's approval ratings are declining. They briefly rose early in the COVID-19 crisis but have since changed amid ongoing criticism. According to a poll released on the 27th of last month by USA Today and Suffolk University, Trump's approval rating was 38%, down 6 percentage points from 44% in December last year. This is effectively lower than Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden's 44%. Other polls also show Trump (40%) trailing Biden (44%).

Trump said in a recent interview that he "does not trust polls" and denied that this election would be a judgment on his COVID-19 response. However, CNN reported at the end of last month, citing sources, that Trump shouted and reprimanded campaign chief Brad Parscale and others during a phone call at a meeting with aides, revealing his anxiety about reelection.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

During the COVID-19 phase, President Trump also failed to demonstrate leadership as a 'leader of the world.' Unlike previous U.S. leaders who showed international leadership in crises, he deflected criticism toward China and the World Health Organization (WHO), focusing on his own country rather than engaging in international cooperation for joint response.

On the 29th of last month, in an interview with a foreign media outlet, Trump claimed, "They (China) are constantly promoting themselves as if they are blameless," and asserted, "This is evidence that they will do anything to prevent my reelection." He said he had seen evidence that COVID-19 originated from the Wuhan virus laboratory in China and even mentioned the possibility of imposing tariffs.

Last month, he also accused WHO of bias toward China and raised accountability issues. He stated, "We are reviewing WHO's response, which concealed virus spread and was seriously flawed during the COVID-19 pandemic," and announced he had ordered a halt to funding while reviewing WHO's role, which drew strong backlash from the international community.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.