Donald Trump has attempted to govern like an authoritarian throughout his presidency.
A clear example is how he covets complete control of the media, just like Vladimir Putin in Russia.
And when anything that resembles state-run TV, like FOX News, invites his opposition on to debate his policies it drives him absolutely crazy.
Trump again today criticized Fox News and host Chris Wallace, saying they are “on a bad path” after Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) appeared on “Fox News Sunday” for the first time since 2017.
Trump in a tweet also called the Speaker “an inherently ‘dumb’ person.”
“She wasted all of her time on the Impeachment Hoax,” he tweeted, referring to Pelosi.
“She will be overthrown, either by inside or out, just like her last time as ‘Speaker,’” he added. “Wallace & @FoxNews are on a bad path, watch!”
Trump has been critical of FOX News even while its talking heads have been overwhelmingly supportive of his agenda.
He has promoted OAN, or One America News, a far-right media network as an alternative.
During her “Fox News Sunday” appearance, the Speaker said Trump “gets an F” on coronavirus testing. She also said National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci’s testing recommendation “hasn’t been done.”
Trump has defended his administration’s testing efforts, saying during a briefing on Saturday that U.S. capacity is “fully sufficient” to begin reopening the economy.
He tweeted today that he was “right on testing” just like he was “right on Ventilators.”
But governors across the country pushed back on the Trump administration’s claims that states are conducting a “sufficient” level of coronavirus testing.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, a Democrat, said it was “delusional” to suggest that the states have enough tests to begin reopening their economies soon.
“That’s just delusional to be making statements like that. We have been fighting every day for PPE,” Northam said, referring to personal protective equipment. “And we have got some supplies now coming in. We have been fighting for testing. It’s not a — it’s not a straightforward test. We don’t even have enough swabs, believe it or not. And we’re ramping that up. But for the national level to say that we have what we need and really to have no guidance to the state levels is just irresponsible, because we’re not there yet.”
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, said that the “lack of testing” is “probably the number one problem in America and has been from the beginning of this crisis.”
“And I have repeatedly made this argument to the leaders in Washington on behalf of the rest of the governors in America,” Hogan said. “And I can tell you I talk to governors on both sides of the aisle nearly every single day. The administration, I think, is trying to ramp up testing and trying — they are doing some things with respect to private labs. But to try to push this off, to say that the governors have plenty of testing and they should just get to work on testing, somehow we aren’t doing our job, is just absolutely false.”
He added that governors have been “fighting and clawing to get more tests” from both the federal government and private labs and are continuing to do so.
He echoed Northam in saying there are shortages of swabs to conduct the tests, among other necessities.
“So, look, I think they have made some strides at the federal level,” Hogan said. “I think states are all working hard on their own to find their own testing. Lab capacity has been increasing. But it’s not accurate to say there’s plenty of testing out there and the governors should just get it done. That’s just not being straightforward.”
Besides Wallace, Trump has also lashed out at Fox News reporters Kristen Fisher and John Roberts for asking him questions during the coronavirus pandemic.
Gah!