Monday, 5 October 2020
That masked wave from Trump. Sane or insane?
The masked wave from the president of the United States inside his bullet-proof, bomb-proof, chemical weapons attack-proof, tank shell-proof, rocket-propelled grenade-proof but NOT Covid-proof limousine could become the defining image of the drama that has hit and overwhelmed the Washington Establishment following Trump testing positive for coronavirus and his swift departure by helicopter to Walter Reed medical centre in Bethesda. Of course we know why he did it. Having being very much aware of the crowds of supporters hanging around outside the hospital, he will have grabbed his chief of staff, Mark Meadows, spotted later with his face in his hands, and ordered him to get his car out front so he could pay due respect to the lovely fans. His Secret Service detail will have gone spare. "No, Mr President, please Mr President, not a sensible idea, we'll take the bullet for you but not Covid. Think of your poor driver, Fred, he has a wife and 14 kids." Then there were the doctors who must surely have advised, "It's really not recommended, Mr President. On medical grounds we cannot advise it." But the joy of being president is that you can overrule everyone. Provided he is not actually putting himself in harm's way in which case the Secret Service could then legitimately and constitutionally veto, what he says has to be done has to be done. Unless it can be shown that he is mentally incapacitated. But if that was the case we would be in a totally different ball game altogether. So out he goes all huddled up by the window of his mighty armoured vehicle and does his waving routine much to the delight of his supporters. Of course the message he wanted to convey was that he was tickety-boo and absolutely fine and pretty well Covid-free. But he is not Covid-free. He is so stuffed with anti-Covid treatment drugs it's surprising he can get out of bed. If any of his Secret Service detail or the driver go down with the virus after his little jaunt, then the repercussions will be huge. It was a gamble not just for him but for everyone who went with him. No wonder one of the doctors not dealing with Trump was quoted as saying it was "insanity". So the answer to the headline above is: it was insane. But not remotely surprising.
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