Trump is an ‘absolute fool’ not to wear a mask, says Biden
War of words comes as US virus deaths climb beyond 100,000
DONALD TRUMP has called a reporter who insisted on wearing a face mask while asking a question “politically correct” as his clash with Joe Biden over whether to wear one escalated.
The US president denied he was mocking Mr Biden, the probable Democratic presidential nominee, for wearing a mask at a recent memorial event after sharing a photo of him doing so on Twitter.
Mr Biden also pushed back against Mr Trump, who has been reluctant to wear a mask in public, calling the president an “absolute fool” for failing to do so. The standoff played out as it was revealed the US coronavirus death toll surpassed 100,000 last night according to data from Johns Hopkins University, almost twice the number of fatalities America suffered in the Vietnam War.
The US also leads the world in confirmed Covid-19 cases, with almost 1.7 million Americans infected since January, according to the Johns Hopkins data tracker.
Mr Biden tweeted: “There are moments in our history so grim, so heart-rending, that they’re forever fixed in each of our hearts as shared grief. Today is one of those moments. 100,000 lives have now been lost to this virus. To those hurting, I’m so sorry for your loss. The nation grieves with you.”
Meanwhile, a poll found only half of Americans say they will definitely take a vaccine if it is developed. The Associated Press found 49 per cent said they would get vaccinated, 31 per cent were not sure and 20 per cent said they would not.
In April the Trump administration changed its guidance and told citizens to wear masks in public. However Mr Trump, despite at times saying he would be willing to wear a mask, has continued not to do so at press conferences and recent out-of-state visits.
On Monday’s Memorial Day, a US bank holiday, Mr Trump and his wife Melania did not wear masks at public events but Mr Biden and his wife Jill did.
On Tuesday, Mr Trump was challenged about a tweet he shared, written by a Fox News analyst, showing Mr Biden in a mask with the words “this might help explain why Trump doesn’t like to wear a mask in public”.
Mr Trump responded: “He was standing outside with his wife, perfect conditions, perfect weather... And so I thought it was very unusual that he had one on.”
He added: “But I thought that was fine. I wasn’t criticising at all. Why would I ever do a thing like that?”
During the briefing, Mr Trump requested that a journalist asking a question through a face mask remove it, apparently struggling to hear. When the reporter declined to do so, Mr Trump said: “Oh OK, you want to be politically correct.”
Mr Biden told CNN. “He’s a fool, an absolute fool to talk that way. Presidents are supposed to lead, not … be falsely masculine.”
He later changed the picture on his Twitter profile to one of him wearing a mask.