said he “didn’t care” about Russian interference in the 2020 election?

During an August 7 press conference, Trump dismissed his own intelligence community’s belief that Russia was working to again have Trump elected.

REPORTER: Thank you, sir. Mr. President, the intelligence agencies today said that Russia is already meddling in this year’s elections to hurt Joe Biden, and that China is considering meddling to hurt you. Do you believe that intelligence, and what do you plan to do about it?

 

TRUMP: I mean, I could be very much. I think that the last person Russia wants to see in office is Donald Trump, because nobody’s been tougher on Russia than I have, ever.

 

REPORTER: That’s not what they calling it.

 

TRUMP: Well, I don’t care what anybody says. Nobody with any common sense would say, “Do it.” Look at what we’ve done with our military. Look at what we’ve done in exposing the pipeline with billions of dollars going to Russia. Look at all of the things we’ve done with NATO, where I’ve raised $130 billion a year from countries that were delinquent, and now they’re paying all of this money. And the $130, by the way, $130 billion, not million, billion, goes to $400 billion over a few years. And that’s all money to protect against Russia. China would love us to have an election where Donald Trump lost sleepy Joe Biden. They would dream. They would own our country.

National Counterintelligence and Security Center William Evanina released a press statement the same day that asserted, “We assess that Russia is using a range of measures to primarily denigrate former Vice President Biden and what it sees as an anti-Russia ‘establishment.'”

Despite Trump’s defense that he had been the hardest on Russia, Trump repeatedly denigrated NATO, comparing it to an unrelated trade agreement. He also took the “extremely strong and powerful” word of Putin over his own intelligence agencies over whether Russia interfered in the 2016 election, and openly said he would accept foreign assistance.

Office of the Direct of National Intelligence – Statement by NCSC Director William Evanina: Election Threat Update for the American Public
WhiteHouse.gov – Remarks by President Trump in Press Briefing | Bedminster, NJ
Business Insider – US intel community believes Russia wants Biden to lose the 2020 election while China wants him to win

was sued by Neil Young?

The suit, which Young posted on his website, states, “The Campaign has willfully ignored Plaintiff’s telling it not to play the songs and willfully proceeded to play the songs despite a lack of license.” It goes on to explain that Young “in good conscience cannot allow his music to be used as a ‘theme song’ for a divisive, un-American campaign of ignorance and hate.”

Trump’s campaign has used various songs without the artists’ permission.

Law & Crime – Neil Young Sues Trump for Unauthorized Use of His Music During ‘Un-American Campaign of Ignorance and Hate’
The Guardian – Neil Young sues Donald Trump campaign for using his music
Neil Young Archives – Law Complaint
Quartz – All the pop songs artists have asked Donald Trump not to use, in one playlist

claimed that an an ammonium nitrate disaster in Beirut was an intentional bombing?

On August 4, 2020, a fire at the docks of Beirut, Lebanon ignited some 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate, a common compound used for fertilizer and explosives.

During a following press conference, Trump claimed that the explosion “looked like a terrible attack.” When asked to elaborate, Trump remarked,

Well, it would seem like it based on the explosion. I’ve met with some of our great generals and they just seem to feel that it was. This was not some kind of a manufacturing explosion type of event. This was seems to be, according to them, they would know better than I would, but they seem to think it was a attack. It was a bomb of some kind. Yes.

Department of Defense officials rejected Trump’s claim, saying instead that there was yet no indication of any kind of attack.

Map of Beirut showing approximate location of the blast, and a 2km radius - as the effects of the explosion were felt across the city
August 4th ammonium nitrate disaster in Beirut. Sky News

Ammonium nitrate disasters have happened several times throughout history. The largest non-nuclear bomb in the American arsenal, the MoAB (Mother of All Bombs) has a yield of 11 tons of TNT. The catastrophic explosion in Beirut was equivalent to approximately 1 kiloton of TNT.

Sky News – Beirut explosion: At least 100 dead and 4,000 injured after ‘ammonium nitrate blast’ 
CNN – US defense officials contradict Trump: No indication yet of attack in Beirut
The Independent – ‘It was a bomb’: Trump says deadly Beirut explosion was ‘terrible attack’ – despite no evidence it was deliberate
Wikipedia – Ammonium nitrate disasters
Wikipedia – GBU-43/B MOAB
Wikipedia – 2015 Tianjin explosions (ammonium nitrate explosion used to determine approximate yield by comparison)
Wikipedia – Largest artificial non-nuclear explosions, Rank order of largest conventional explosions/detonations by magnitude

said “it is what it is” when asked about 1,000 US deaths a day from COVID-19?

In a July 19 interview on Fox News, Trump shrugged off over 150,000 American deaths from COVID-19 by saying, “it is what it is.”

WALLACE: But I can tell you, the death chart is a thousand cases a day.

TRUMP: Excuse me, it’s all too much, it shouldn’t be one case. It came from China. They should’ve never let it escape. They should’ve never let it out. But it is what it is. Take a look at Europe, take a look at the numbers in Europe. And by the way, they’re having cases.

WALLACE: I can tell you cases are 6,000 in the whole European Union.

Trump went on to claim that the reason why cases were lower in the European Union was because they didn’t adequately test.

Trump repeated the remark in another interview with Axios on August 3 when asked about the daily deaths across the country.

TRUMP: Yeah. Under the circumstances right now, I think it’s under control. I’ll tell you what-

SWAN: How? 1,000 Americans are dying a day.

TRUMP: They are dying. That’s true. And it is what it is. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t doing everything we can. It’s under control as much as you can control it. This is a horrible plague that beset us.

During the same interview, he also objected to the use of deaths per capita as a metric of the severity of the virus in the United States.

Trump dismissed concerns about COVID-19 since it first began to spread in the United States.

Fox News – Transcript: ‘Fox News Sunday’ interview with President Trump
The Daily Beast – Trump Shrugs Off COVID Death Toll in Fox News Interview: ‘It Is What It Is’
The Hill – Trump on coronavirus death toll: ‘It is what it is’

replied to a consideration of COVID-19 deaths per capita by saying “you can’t do that”?

During an August 3, 2020 interview with Axios, Trump defended his administration’s response to COVID-19 by using data showing deaths per confirmed cases. When the interviewer noted the deaths per capita instead, Trump replied, “you can’t do that,” and went on to say that he was “reporting it wrong.”

The difference in considering deaths per cases and deaths per capita is that the former reflects the quality of healthcare for the infected, while the latter reflects the presence of COVID-19 through the population.

At the time of the interview, the United States ranked 10th highest in the world for deaths per capita, and had a case fatality rate of approximately 3.3%. It totaled 4,863,916 confirmed cases and 158,928 deaths. Trump downplayed concerns over COVID-19 since it first began to spread in the United States.

During the same interview, Trump also avoided offering any praise for the late civil rights leader and US Representative John Lewis.

Business Insider – Trump replied ‘you can’t do that’ when his interviewer pointed out the US’s terrible record on COVID-19 deaths per capita
Worldometer – Coronavirus, United States
Our World in Data – Case fatality rate vs. Total confirmed COVID-19 deaths

declined to offer praise for the late civil rights figure and US Representative John Lewis?

When asked how he viewed US Representative for Georgia and civil rights figure John Lewis’ legacy after his death, Trump remarked:

He didn’t come to my inauguration; he didn’t come to my State of the Union speeches—and that’s okay, that’s his right. Again, nobody has done more for Black Americans than I have.

John Lewis, a major figure in the US Civil Rights Movement, was among the main organizers of the March on Washington in which Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the famous “I Have a Dream” speech. Lewis died on July 17, 2020 of pancreatic cancer.

John Lewis (left) and Martin Luther King Jr. (right) march from Memphis to Jackson, Mississippi. (Harry Benson / Contour / Getty)

In the same interview with Axios, Trump again dismissed ongoing concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and record deaths in the United States.

Forbes – Trump Snubs Civil Rights Leader John Lewis: ‘I Don’t Know’ How History Will Remember Him
Business Insider – Trump refuses to acknowledge John Lewis’ achievements and claims he’s done ‘more for Black Americans’
NPR – Trump Criticizes Late Rep. John Lewis For Not Attending Inauguration
The Atlantic – How Martin Luther King Jr. Recruited John Lewis
Wikipedia – John Lewis

suggested postponing national elections?

The day for elections is established in the Constitution, so any such change requires new legislation. The 20th Amendment to the Constitution also specifically states that Presidential terms conclude on the following January 20th, Inauguration Day. No legislation is likely to be passed that would allow for any change.

The next person in order of succession is the speaker of the House. However, if there were no election, that seat would too be vacant, as the House has two-year terms that conclude on January 3 following the election. The next individual in line is president pro tempore of the Senate, who is the senior Senator of the majority party and presides over the Senate in the Vice President’s absence. The Senator who holds the title – Chuck Grassley of Iowa – is also up for reelection in 2020, and so his seat would similarly be vacant if no election were held. Because of the number of Senate seats up for re-election, if no election was held, Democrats would gain the majority in the chamber, and because the process of selecting the president pro tempore is informal, could choose any among them.

Trump claimed he lost the 2016 popular vote because of widespread fraud, though the commission he established to investigate it found none. Since then he has disparaged mail-in and other measures for easier voting, though he and his family vote by mail themselves, and has yet to confirm if he would accept 2020 election results.

At the same time that Trump made the suggestion to postpone elections amid the COVID-19 pandemic, his administration pushed for a full re-opening of schools across the United States.

NPR – Trump Floats Delaying The Election. It Would Require A Change In Law
Constitution Daily – Does the Constitution allow for a delayed presidential election?
Politico – Postpone the Election? That Could Mean President Biden

retweeted a claim that his own CDC was lying about COVID-19?

On July 13, 2020, Trump retweeted former game show host Chuck Woolery, who pushed to reopen schools amid record new cases of COVID-19. He alleged that scientific evidence pointed to the move, and that Democrats, Media, the CDC, and “our Doctors” had been lying about the disease.

Tweets from former game show host Chuck Woolery that were retweeted by the president of the United States.
Trump retweets former game show host Chuck Woolery, on the morning of Jul 13, 2020.

When asked if endorsing comments that doubted his own Center for Disease Control would be confusing to the public, Trump replied,

I didn’t make a comment. I reposted a tweet that a lot of people feel. But all I am doing is making a comment. I’m just putting somebody’s voice out there. There are many voices. There are many people that think we shouldn’t do this kind of testing, because all we do, it’s a trap.

Three days later, Woolery deleted his Twitter account upon learning that his son tested positive for COVID-19.

On the day of the retweet, the United States totaled 3,483,584 cases and 120,004 deaths.

The Hill – Trump retweets game show host who said CDC is lying about coronavirus to hurt him politically
The Hill – Game show host retweeted by Trump deletes his account after announcing his son has coronavirus
The Baltimore Sun – After Trump retweets game show host saying CDC and doctors are lying, coronavirus task force pushes back: ‘None of us lie’
Deadline – Donald Trump, In CBS News Interview, Defends His Retweet Of Chuck Woolery’s Claim That CDC Officials Are Lying About COVID-19
Worldometer – Coronavirus Cases, United States

promoted Goya products in the Oval Office?

On July 9, 2020, Goya CEO Robert Unanue appeared at the White House Rose Garden to praise Trump. Unanue likened Trump to his grandfather, who founded Goya, saying “We’re all truly blessed at the same time to have a leader like President Trump, who is a builder. And that’s what my grandfather did.”

The remarks immediate sparked backlash against the company from critics of the administration. In response, Trump and his daughter Ivank posed with various Goya products, posting them on Instagram and Twitter.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCrAzKiBFUQ/?utm_source=ig_embed

The photos were met with another round of backlash, as they appeared to violate federal ethics rules about using one’s position for promotional purposes. Federal law outlining the standards of conduct for employees in the executive branch are directly prohibited from using the office for private gain:

§ 2635.702 Use of public office for private gain.

An employee shall not use his public office for his own private gain, for the endorsement of any product, service or enterprise, or for the private gain of friends, relatives, or persons with whom the employee is affiliated in a nongovernmental capacity, including nonprofit organizations of which the employee is an officer or member, and persons with whom the employee has or seeks employment or business relations. The specific prohibitions set forth in paragraphs (a) through (d) of this section apply this general standard, but are not intended to be exclusive or to limit the application of this section.

Various members of the Trump administration violated such provisions.

Business Insider – Trump posts photo of himself grinning alongside Goya products in the Oval Office, as critics accuse Ivanka Trump of violating ethics rules for promoting the company’s beans
Politico – Struggling with Latinos, Trump hypes Goya food fight
The Washington Post – Ivanka Trump posts photo holding Goya beans, draws criticism for using her position to promote a product
Cornell University Legal Information Institute – 5 CFR § 2635.702 – Use of public office for private gain.

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