The notably germaphobic President Trump was so bothered by a background cough during his interview with ABC News last week that he had to stop and kick his chief of staff out of the room.
“Let’s do that over he’s coughing in the middle of my answer,” Trump said, apparently pointing to Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney. “I don’t like that, you know, I don’t like that.”
“Yeah, ok,” ABC’s George Stephanopoulos agree. “Your chief of staff.”
“If you’re gonna cough, please leave the room,” he scolded Mulvaney. “You just can’t cough, you just can’t cough.”
Pres. Trump says he “might” turn over his “financial statement” to Congress.
“I hope they get it, because it’s a fantastic financial statement,” he tells @GStephanopoulos in the Oval Office. https://t.co/8q0FwFD9qt pic.twitter.com/fw1tIc0vxO
— ABC News (@ABC) June 17, 2019
While it seemed like an neurotic response to an innocent background cough, Trump is reportedly notorious for scolding any cough-ers in his presence. According to the Washington Post, Trump’s 2016 team was well aware of this peculiar Trump tick and warned staffers never to cough or sneeze in Trump’s presence because he interprets it as a sign of weakness.
Text from former 2016 Trump campaign staffer: “I was told by multiple people when I came aboard to never cough or sneeze while in the presence of Trump. He thinks it’s a sign of weakness and lack of control. Nobody ever recovers.” https://t.co/9CmKeoH1iu
— Jackie Alemany (@JaxAlemany) June 17, 2019
