President Donald Trump is defending his position on masks and his decision to hold rallies amid the coronavirus pandemic.
During his 60 Minutes interview with Lesley Stahl, she told Trump, âI canât believe after what happened in the Rose Garden here after the announcement with all the people getting sick that you are not being more strongly encouraging about wearing masks at your rallies.â
Trump replied, âI am. I tell people to wear masks.â
She interrupted him, âBut you donât.â
The president claimed the Trump campaign hands out thousands of masks at the rallies.
Stahl argued she looks out at the rallies and sees his supporters not wearing them.
Watch the conversation below:
Stahl challenged Trump on his refusal to tell his supporters to wear masks to avoid getting sick.
He touted the size and success of his rallies.
âWeâre outside. The rallies are bigger than theyâve ever been. Thereâs more enthusiasm than weâve ever had. There has never been anything like what youâre witnessing now and youâll see that soon,â Trump said.
Stahl reiterated she is more concerned about the masks than the size of his rallies.
âYou commented on the size of the rally. You said theyâre not as big as they used to be and Iâm telling you theyâre much bigger,â Trump said.
He grew frustrated and told Stahl to move on to the next question.
Trumpâs interview with Stahl was scheduled to air on Sunday, but he took it upon himself to post the video in full to Facebook on Thursday, as IJR previously reported.
The president walked out of the interview after he had âenough.â
Stahl criticized Vice President Mike Pence and Trump for failing to answer her questions and instead giving set campaign speeches, as IJR previously reported.
She told Pence she felt they âhave insulted â60 Minutes.'â
CBS announced they will air Trumpâs interview with âfull, fair, and contextual reporting.â
