CNN’s Stelter: History Will Condemn Trump for Flouting Safety Guidelines, Undermining His Own Government Throughout Pandemic

CNN’s Brian Stelter used his latest Reliable Sources opening monologue to make the argument that history will not look kindly on President Donald Trump for how he and his supporters handled the coronavirus.

Stelter began by speculating on what historians will think when they eventually look back on how politicians and the media acted in response to the deadly pandemic. On the subject of Trump, Stelter warned that they will see that the president “waded deeper and deeper into disinformation and distraction as the death toll rose.”

“The history books will show that the president modeled the worst practices instead of the best practices,” Stelter said. He went on by detailing how Trump “flouted safety guidelines,” “undermined his own government by downplaying the threat,” and hyped “unproven solutions” like hydroxychloroquine.

Noting that Trump has also used the pandemic to continue his war against the press, Stelter also said historians will note “the president had entire propaganda networks at his disposal to help him change the subject.”

“They will note how sad it was that everything — even doctors and researchers — were placed on a pro-Trump or anti-Trump spectrum,” continued Stelter. “Historians will also address why so many Republican leaders just sat there silently while the president’s conduct went from alarming to appalling and beyond.”

On the latter point, Stelter referred to Trump’s “pathetic” Saturday night Twitter attacks against his enemies, and he lamented “maybe this doesn’t belong in a history book.”

Watch above, via CNN.