Thread by @opinion

The president of the U.S., the leader of the free world, has Covid-19.

He failed to protect the country, and then failed to protect himself trib.al/DPeddci

The consequences of President Trump’s hubris and apathy for about 7.3 million Americans who’ve been infected have been dire:

➡️More than 208,000 lives lost
➡️Social and political divisions at a boil
➡️An economy in tatters

One of the many ironies is that Trump is a self-described germaphobe.

He avoids shaking hands, is easily alarmed by anyone showing the slightest symptoms of a cold and even steered clear of his newborn son, Barron, for fear of catching an illness trib.al/DPeddci

Long before Covid-19, Trump routinely invited aides to squirt shots of sanitizer into his palms.

Hope Hicks was often in charge of Trump’s Purell bottle when they traveled together trib.al/DPeddci

On Thursday, it was revealed that Hicks had tested positive for the virus. She had traveled with Trump to his Tuesday debate in Cleveland and a rally in Minnesota the next day.

At the debate, team Trump paraded inside the forum without masks trib.al/DPeddci

Trump suggested Hicks may have been infected by contact with overzealous members of the military and law enforcement who wanted to hug and kiss her.

Those are just two of the institutions Trump has regularly belittled or savaged during his presidency trib.al/DPeddci

Throughout the pandemic, Trump has bullied federal institutes such as:

➡️Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
➡️National Institutes of Health
➡️Food and Drug Administration

Battered and bruised, they offered inconsistent advice to the public

Trump also waged war against the most common-sense tools the public could use to combat the virus.

Masks became, for broad swaths of the country, don’t-tread-on-me symbols of resistance to a federal government intent on pickpocketing people’s liberty

Then the president, who wanted to keep escalating Covid-19 metrics under wraps, came up with the novel and incorrect theory that it’s better to test less while mired in an epic public health crisis

As Florida, Texas, Arizona and California experienced spiking positivity rates, Trump had a change of heart on masks.

But it didn’t last long: The Republican National Convention was packed and mask-less

Trump is older and obese, two factors that make him more vulnerable to Covid-19.

Rather than take all of the precautions someone in his situation should have, he continued to stage tightly packed rallies on the campaign trail

But now the virus has the U.S. president in its grip:

📉U.S. stock futures plunged
💷Overseas markets were rattled
⚖️Hearings for a new SCOTUS justice may be delayed
📢Presidential campaign thrown into disarray trib.al/DPeddci

Trump is a survivor and has been able to power over hurdles before.

But for now, reality has caught up with the reality-TV star trib.al/DPeddci