Trump likes Tom Brady comparison

President Trump, facing new political pressure over his response to the coronavirus, complained about the “fake news” and invoked former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in a rambling press conference held amid grim news that unemployment cases spiraled to nearly 3.3 million.

Trump earlier spoke to the nation’s governors and said he was prepared to “back up” states to battle the pandemic — reportedly prompting Washington Gov. Jay Inslee to say, “I don’t want you to be the backup. We need you to be Tom Brady.”

“Somebody in the fake news said that one of the governors said, ‘Oh, we need Tom Brady,’” Trump said. “I said, ‘Yeah, he meant that in a positive way.’ He said, ‘We need Tom Brady. We’re gonna do great.’ And he meant it very positively. But they took it differently. They think Tom Brady should be leading the effort. That’s only fake news. And I like Tom Brady. Spoke to him the other day. He’s a great guy.”

Trump’s answer puzzled the media in the White House briefing, but it appears the president was referring to an Associated Press report about his phone call with the governors.

The reference to Brady came as Trump faced new criticism from Democrats over his pandemic response.

Former Vice President Joe Biden released a new Internet ad blasting Trump for his slow response to the virus, using Trump’s words from early in the crisis to show he wasn’t prepared to handle the deadly surge in cases.

“In times of crisis, American presidents have always stepped up to meet the moment,” Biden tweeted with a link to his attack web ad. “But all we’ve gotten from Donald Trump are lies, excuses and scapegoats. Trump has failed our country at a time we need him most.”

The attack video is a prelude to what is sure to be a coordinated campaign by Biden’s campaign and Democrats to use the pandemic to go after Trump for his “failed” leadership.