Trump explodes at reporter: “That’s why you’re Yahoo and nobody knows who you are.”
The United States now has over 1 million cases of COVID-19 cases and rather than devoting every ounce of his energy to uniting the country in the midst of this still-worsening crisis, President Trump continues to indulge in his worst, least productive habits
Today, during a meeting with Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) Trump once again waded into a disgraceful, bullying interaction with a member of the free press.
The president was asked by Yahoo‘s Hunter Walker why South Korea has “done five times more tests than the US per capita.” Trump responded that he didn’t think the number was accurate and then asked what news outlet Walker worked for.
When Walker responded that he was a reporter for Yahoo News Trump made a condescending facial expression and kicked the question to Dr. Birx, the White House’s Coronavirus Response Coordinator.
Birx, in turn, gave a rambling defense of the United States’ handling of the outbreak while failing to directly answer the journalist’s question.
REPORTER: South Korea has done 5 times more tests than the US per capita. Why is that?
TRUMP: I don't think that's true
R: That is true, and you said the US passed South Korea in virus testing
T: I don't think that's true. Who are you with?
R: Yahoo
TRUMP: *has Birx answer* pic.twitter.com/SDsk2Csr0e
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 28, 2020
Dr. Birx later circled back to address the “Yahoo gentleman” and corrected his earlier statement, informing him that South Korea’s COVID-19 testing rate was 11 per 100,000 and the United States is at 17 per 100,000. It was a perfectly understandable and minor mistake on Walker’s part but Trump used it to pounce like a schoolyard bully
“Are you going to apologize Yahoo? That’s why you’re Yahoo and nobody knows who you are,” mocked Trump. When the reporter tried to explain himself, the president repeated his childish sentiment: “That’s why nobody knows who you are including me.”
“You ought to get your facts right before you make a statement like that,” Trump added. It was a shameful performance of the kind we’ve come to expect from the PR and ratings obsessed Trump and proved once again that he is incapable of even basic human decency.
“That’s why nobody knows who you are, including me” — Trump and Birx team up to attack the Yahoo reporter who asked earlier about testing pic.twitter.com/ZBrqOiCKGm
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 28, 2020
Walker later addressed the encounter via Twitter and conceded that while the USA has passed South Korea in tests per capita our infection is “far higher” as he noted. Walker pointed out that the president and Birx failed to answer his questions about the latter fact.
The tweets are a perfect example of how a civil, productive conversation between a government official and reporter should be handled and Trump would do well to take a page from Walker’s book.
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