‘Absolute Catastrophe’: Online Meltdown Triggered by Trump’s Error-Filled Coronavirus Speech

President Donald Trump’s Oval Office address on Wednesday night was intended to calm the global markets and allay fears among Americans about the worldwide coronavirus pandemic.

But based on the near-universal negative reactions to it — as well as the very public corrections the White House had to issue immediately afterwards — Trump’s effort was little more than a “presidential fail” that ranked among the all-time worst presidential addresses and instead only  ignited further global economic panic.

That was disturbing in so many ways.

— Justin Amash (@justinamash) March 12, 2020

That speech was a disaster. Hard to count the ways.

— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) March 12, 2020

The speech by @realDonaldTrump is most remarkable for its xenophobia, but it also failed to prepare Americans for what it is to come or for fixing the testing fiasco. We are about to prove the adage that things have to get worse before they get even worse.

— Richard N. Haass (@RichardHaass) March 12, 2020

An Oval Office address should be the most vetted speech a President gives. And one on a global pandemic even more. Trump’s speech tonight has already had a clarifying statement from DHS and a Trump tweet contradicting the oval address. Presidential fail.

— Joe Lockhart (@joelockhart) March 12, 2020

This was a speech designed in part to calm global markets. But then Trump accidentally said the US was banning cargo from Europe … https://t.co/EFoSN707k8

— Ben Pershing (@benpershing) March 12, 2020

Markets crashing on Trump speech https://t.co/aZ7i7ZT6WL

— David Frum (@davidfrum) March 12, 2020

I suspect that was the single worst – and most counter-productive – presidential address in history

— Edward Luce (@EdwardGLuce) March 12, 2020

I feel like it would be nice, during a global pandemic, to have a president who can speak in coherent sentences.

His address to the nation was an absolute catastrophe.

— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) March 12, 2020

Trump’s delivery was weird. He looked nervous and could barely articulate words. He stunned Europe by announcing he was blocking all of their goods. He took it back in a tweet that acknowledged no mistake. Will reporting on this speech address what’s right in front of our eyes? pic.twitter.com/BS7RkFcUed

— Walter Shaub (@waltshaub) March 12, 2020

An abdication of duty. There is so much Trump assumed about the spread of coronavirus here. Stephen Miller’s speech called it the “foreign virus.” Then he bans travel to Europe for 30 days? No empathy at all for our allies; just blame. And what about the tests? What is our plan?

— Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) March 12, 2020

I don’t know about you all, but watching the president plodding through a Stephen Miller speech in a dull monotone is *really* filling me with confidence.

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) March 12, 2020

This is not good. Nothing on the massive social disruptions/distancing. The travel restrictions are incomprehensible (it’s here!). The focus on economy (70% of speech so far) seems to miss point. The “we have so many fewer cases” is a total setup (for him). #coronavirus

— Juliette Kayyem (@juliettekayyem) March 12, 2020

First European cargo, now this. Multiple big, consequential errors in a teleprompter speech. https://t.co/xnmQ2XZUS4

— Dan Primack (@danprimack) March 12, 2020

How how did he f*** this up while the words were right there in front of him? I mean, all he had to do was read one speech, pronounce the words, and not look terrified, and he blew it. https://t.co/kqTfwYreC6

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) March 12, 2020

It’s completely inexcusable to issue this many clarifications about a primetime address to the nation – particularly a speech about an urgent public health crisis. Spoke to a friend right after who was panicked because he didn’t think he could get his son home from Paris.

— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) March 12, 2020

Trump was reading from a prompter and the speech had been vetted by many advisers, yet he still misstated how broad the travel ban will be https://t.co/CAhnxtKkCN

— Manu Raju (@mkraju) March 12, 2020

The two themes of all Trump speeches:

– I am great, beyond comparison
– Other people and places are cheaters and to blame

Can those themes be applied to a speech about a pandemic?
Two minutes in, the answer is: Yes indeed!

— James Fallows (@JamesFallows) March 12, 2020

It’s breathtaking to look at the scope of Stephen Miller’s policy ambitions and compare it to his complete, utter inability to draft a live prime time presidential speech without fucking up key basic facts about the policy it was announcing. Just an astounding stupidity to him.

— Adam Weinstein (@AdamWeinstein) March 12, 2020

Donald Trump’s scapegoating coronavirus speech shows he just doesn’t get ithttps://t.co/yymt7mCI5k pic.twitter.com/bdMCSwCjMz

— Chris Cillizza (@CillizzaCNN) March 12, 2020

The militaristic, nationalistic language of Trump’s speech tonight is striking: a ‘foreign virus,’ keeping out China and Europe.

But the virus is already here in America.

— Susan Glasser (@sbg1) March 12, 2020

Trump’s speech reveals he lacks even basic competence and a simple understanding of how viruses work. It’s terrifying. https://t.co/PM3hQxr8hM

— Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) March 12, 2020

There have been some really impressive walk-backs from a speech Trump *read* an hour ago. https://t.co/tfuZHykJcv

— Seth Masket (@smotus) March 12, 2020

Trump’s fear about the economy, the stock market and the potential for a financial crisis is what stands out to me in his speech. He’s freaking out.

— Sasha Stone (@AwardsDaily) March 12, 2020