After a two day break, the White House coronavirus task force was back in the briefing room to update the public on the outbreak of the virus.
It did not take long for President Donald Trump to begin clashing with reporters who pushed back on his claim that he has the authority — not governors — to decide when to lift restrictions on public life.
When he was asked about his claim, Trump said, “When somebody is the President of the United States, the authority is total. And that’s the way it’s gotta be. It’s total.”
Watch the video below:
Throughout the press conference, which lasted more than two hours, Trump defended his actions aimed at curbing the spread of the virus as well as his claim on his presidential authority.
CNN tried to capture the moments of the briefing with sensational chyrons:
CNN’s Jim Acosta had harsh words for Trump’s demeanor during the press conference, “That is the biggest meltdown I have ever seen from a President of the United States in my career.”
“I don’t think a reasonable person could watch what we just saw over the last hour and conclude that the president is in control — he sounds like he is out of control,” he added.
He continued, “He was ranting and raving for the better part of the last hour during that news conference. … The Constitution does not give the President of the United States total authority.”
Check out some of the reactions below:
https://twitter.com/EWErickson/status/1249845924668506112
https://twitter.com/waltshaub/status/1249836852632305664
https://twitter.com/sam_vinograd/status/1249822816138153991
https://twitter.com/morningmika/status/1249822657526272005
The fiery press conference led the hashtag “Trump Meltdown” to trend on Twitter.