The first thing the president did when he arrived at the White House, newly released from the hospital, was take off his mask. Irresponsibility can be a limitless feature, once mastered with ease and practiced for a length of time. A person can be more irresponsible today than they were yesterday. And Donald Trump is not only irresponsible, he is also reckless.
When the president tested positive for COVID-19 and had to be admitted to the hospital, he left behind a long list of infected people. They had all passed through the presidential residence several days earlier to take part in an event where face masks were the exception, hands were shaken, and kisses and hugs were given away freely, as if that were reasonable. One of these cases was that of the White House press secretary, who appeared before the press to confirm that Trump was infected, and did so without wearing a mask. Days before, in another press briefing, she was asked why she was the only one in the room not wearing a mask. Her answer—keeping with the Trumpist manual—was that wearing it is not mandatory, but a personal choice. She has tested positive, along with other associates and reporters.
The list of irresponsible people is long, including presidential advisers and senators. They must have all felt untouchable to a virus that, at any moment, can even reach someone following sanitary measures to the letter. However, if a person ignores these measures, their chances of falling ill are high, and the chances of taking down everyone around them are huge.
However, Trump does not give in. Immersed as he is in a desperate campaign against both his rival and the polls, he allowed himself to leave the hospital in order to wave at the hooligans supporting him at the entrance, forcing the two secret service agents who escorted him to quarantine. And when he chose to discharge himself, he tried to persuade his supporters that this was not a demonstration of his thoughtless management of the health crisis, but a show of physical strength, and therefore—according to his childish mentality—he should continue leading the country. The fact that he advises people not to be scared of a disease that has killed more than 200,000 American citizens, is an assessment in itself.
During the first debate between the two presidential candidates, Trump mocked Joe Biden for never taking off his mask in public, calling it “The biggest mask I’ve ever seen.” This is just one more caricature of a grotesque presidency, in which the inhabitant of the White House has achieved the absurd goal of establishing that the clearest difference in such a polarized country is that Democrats wear face masks and Republicans are reluctant to do so.
La mascarilla de Trump
Lo primero que hizo el presidente de los Estados Unidos al llegar a la Casa Blanca, recién "escapado" del hospital, fue quitarse la mascarilla. La irresponsabilidad es una característica que, una vez que se domina con soltura y se ha practicado durante tiempo, puede no tener límite. Hoy se puede ser más irresponsable que ayer, por muy irresponsable que se fuera ayer. Y Donald Trump es muchas más cosas además de un irresponsable. También es temerario.
Cuando dio positivo y tuvo que ser ingresado, el presidente dejó atrás una larga lista de contagiados. Todos ellos habían pasado por la residencia presidencial unos días antes para participar en un acto en el que las mascarillas eran una excepción, y donde se estrecharon manos y se regalaron besos y abrazos como si eso fuera posible. Uno de los casos es el de la jefa de prensa, que fue quien compareció ante los periodistas para confirmar el contagio de Trump, y lo hizo sin mascarilla. Días antes, en otra rueda de prensa, le preguntaron por qué era ella la única que no usaba mascarilla en aquella sala. Su respuesta, propia del manual del trumpismo, fue que llevarla es solo una opción personal, no una obligación. Ella y varios colaboradores e informadores han dado positivo.
"Que recomiende no tener miedo al contagio cuando han muerto más de 200.000 en su país se valora por sí solo"
La lista de irresponsables es larga y alcanza a asesores presidenciales y senadores. Todos ellos debían sentirse intocables para un virus que puede alcanzarte en cualquier momento, incluso si sigues al pie de la letra las medidas sanitarias. Pero que, si las ignoras, tus opciones de caer son muchas. Y las opciones de que, a su vez, hagas caer a quienes te rodean son enormes.
Sin embargo, Trump no cede. Metido en una campaña electoral a la desesperada contra su rival y contra los sondeos, se permitió salir en coche del hospital para saludar a los hooligans que le apoyaban en la puerta, lo que ha obligado a los dos agentes de seguridad que le acompañaban a guardar cuarentena. Y cuando decidió darse el alta a sí mismo trató de convencer a su hinchada de que esa es la demostración no de su inconsciencia en la gestión de esta crisis de salud, sino de una fortaleza física que le haría, según su mentalidad infantilizada, digno de seguir al frente del país. Que recomiende no tener miedo al contagio cuando han muerto más de 200.000 estadounidenses se valora por sí solo.
En el primer debate entre los dos candidatos a la presidencia, Trump se burló de Joe Biden por no quitarse nunca la mascarilla en público ("la mascarilla más grande que he visto en mi vida", ironizó). Es solo una caricatura más de una presidencia grotesca, en la que el inquilino de la Casa Blanca ha conseguido el absurdo objetivo de que la diferencia más evidente en un país tan polarizado sea que los demócratas lleven mascarilla y los republicanos se resistan a ponérsela.
This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link
.
This isn't a moment for partisanship. It's also not a moment for division. And it’s certainly not a moment to cherry-pick which incidents of political violence count and which do not.
This isn't a moment for partisanship. It's also not a moment for division. And it’s certainly not a moment to cherry-pick which incidents of political violence count and which do not.