Let's nip this thing in the bud. Peter Alexander asked, not only a loaded question, but a gotcha question. Here's a quick primer on both, and my explanation as to why his question fits both bills. 
First of all, Peter didn't just ask a simple question. It was a complex one. He didn't merely ask Trump what he'd say to Americans who are frightened. He said "What do you say to Americans who are sacred though?" Then he loaded the question with a number of case statistics.
"Nearly 200 dead, 14,000 who are sick, millions, as you witnessed, who are scared right now, what do you say to Americans who are watching you right now, who are scared?" At a minimum, that creates a complex question by loading it up with this information, to pin the answerer.
Now, this is a common press tactic, so I'm not saying this is even out of order. What I'm saying is this whole press conference is designed to allay the fears of the public, by informing them. If he asked what do you say to Americans who are sacred. that would not be sensational.
Now, what makes this a gotcha question? The same networks and reporters, for weeks now, have been saying Trump has been soft-selling the coronavirus pandemic, because of his hopeful messaging. Peter asks a loaded question and defies Trump to say something hopeful.
This is a no-win situation. If Trump tries to say something hopeful he gets attacked for making light of the statistics Peter brought up. If he doesn't say something hopeful then the whole purpose of the briefing is moot.
When you ask a question that makes it very challenging to provide an answer, and you have a history of being combative, what do you expect the response to be? Trump accurately pointed out the question was sensational, defeats the purpose of the question, and puts him in a bind.
Keep in mind, I'm not saying the core question was bad. But it was loaded up with statistics and a narrative to sell the idea that hopeful messaging flies in the face of them. The question was asked later without such baggage, and was answered outright.
Both Mike Pence and Donald Trump answered the question, offering hope to Americans, but for some reason I can't get any of the videos to play on Twitter right now, to pull up those quotes. Bottom line: Trump answered the question, and pointed out the sensationalism around it.
One other thing, that I didn't catch earlier, because the cameras weren't facing Peter, but he first said: "Is it possible that your impulse to put a positive spin on things may be giving Americans a false sense of hope when representing the preparedness right now?"
Right after that is the rest of the question I highlighted in my earlier tweets in this thread. Peter Alexander set up the question by attacking Trump for his "impulse to put a positive spin on things may be giving Americans a false sense of hope" then he asked him the question.
"Is it possible that your impulse to put a positive spin on things may be giving Americans a false sense of hope when representing the preparedness right now?"
"What do you say to Americans who are sacred?"
Like can he give them hope or not, Peter? Damned if he does or doesn't.
"What do you say to Americans who are sacred?"
Like can he give them hope or not, Peter? Damned if he does or doesn't.
