PBS’ Yamiche Alcindor: Trump Now ‘Has to Contend With the Fact That as President… He Could Not Protect Himself from Getting This Virus’

PBS White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor appeared on MSNBC early Friday to react to the stunning news of President Donald Trump testing positive for coronavirus, saying this “really upends” his own rhetoric downplaying the virus.

Ali Velshi asked if the president might now “embrace a more logical approach to coronavirus.”

Alcindor said we’re in “uncharted territory” right now and noted the president’s recent rhetoric about the ongoing pandemic:

“The president, of course, said that there was going to be a miracle that did away with this virus. He’s been trying to put the virus and this pandemic in the rearview mirror, saying that essentially the United States is getting through this. And now he, himself, has to contend with the fact that as the president of the United States, he could not protect himself from getting this virus. That’s a remarkable statement. The president has been saying that he’s going to keep Americans safe and now at this point he hasn’t been able to keep himself safe, and that underscores how this virus is really infecting and touching Americans across socioeconomic lines, across gender and racial lines.”

She noted that the president is “the most protected American in the country” and the fact that he has the coronavirus “really upends the president’s argument that this virus is something that maybe is going to be going away and not to be taken too seriously.”

You can watch above, via MSNBC.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!