President Donald Trump on Thursday gestured at possibly taking some responsibility for a failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic, before quickly retreating into a familiar blame game with China.
“I take full responsibility,” Trump said, before quickly adding: “It’s not my fault it came here. It’s China’s fault.”
The comment laid bare a common refrain for President Trump to blame others for his failures as a President after more than 224,000 people as of Friday morning, have died from coronavirus in the United States and he has continuously sought to mislead the public about the virus’ severity.
It’s almost impossible to sum up the many times Trump shrugged responsibility for his bungled pandemic response.
When it came to testing back in March, Trump claimed it was the fault of his predecessor that testing for the novel coronavirus wasn’t meeting demand.
“The Obama administration made a decision on testing that turned out to be very detrimental to what we’re doing,” Trump said at the time, suggesting the former president had hampered his administration’s ability to roll out testing.
In a stunning twist, once testing got underway, Trump blamed the tests for rising cases — suggesting if the country tested less there wouldn’t be any COVID-19 cases at all.
In an interview with Axios’ Jonathan Swan in August, when given the opportunity to own up to his failures after more than 155,000 people had died from coronavirus in the United States at that time, Trump famously said — “it is what it is.”
Calling it an “iconic debate line” and a “slogan for 2020” critics on Twitter wouldn’t let Trump forget just how often he’s shrugged responsibility for COVID-19 in the past:
The more I think about it, the more I think "I take full responsibility. It's not my fault" is going to be a truly iconic debate line.
It's "who am I? Why am I here?" level work.
— Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) October 23, 2020
“I take full responsibility, it’s China’s fault,” is really the slogan of 2020
— Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) October 23, 2020
President Trump says he takes full responsibility for his response to pandemic.
A few months ago, when Kristen Welker asked Trump about responsibility for COVID, he said, "I don't take responsibility at all."
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) October 23, 2020
Two consecutive sentences: “I take full responsibility. It’s not my fault…”
— Steve Inskeep (@NPRinskeep) October 23, 2020
Trump:
Why didn't he get stuff done on his watch?
Also Trump:
Coronavirus will "disappear" like a "miracle"
"I don't take responsibility at all"
Now that more than 200K died, it's "not my fault"
"I got stuck with it"
(All real quotes from Trump)
— Greg Sargent (@ThePlumLineGS) October 23, 2020
Trump: I take full responsibility for coronavirus but it’s not my fault, it’s China’s fault. But it’s my responsibility…What does responsibility mean, again?
Trump talks about closing the border to China like Al Bundy talks about his four-touchdown football game in high school
— michaelharriot (@michaelharriot) October 23, 2020
“I take full responsibility, it’s not my fault, it’s China’s fault.” pic.twitter.com/r9uASNXnUL
— Gloria Johnson (@VoteGloriaJ) October 23, 2020
I’m rubber, you’re glue.
This is Donnie to a ‘T’…he talks out of both sides of his mouth so you can never pin him down to one position. And then when accused he screams ‘Fake news!’ because at one time he said ‘I take responsibility’ BUT ‘it’s China’s fault!’…He does it constantly.
" ‘Responsibility’ is for you to observe so I can take the credit."
– Trump manual, chapter 3
Pop Quiz
SUPERMAN is to Kryptonite
As
TRUMP is to…
(answer: Accountability)