CNN anchor Chris Cuomo has delivered a fiery attack on President Donald Trump's appearance without a mask on the White House balcony, following the commander-in-chief's discharge from hospital.
On Monday night, the Cuomo Prime Time host took aim at Trump's arrival back from a three-day stint for COVID treatment at the Walter Reed Medical Center. The still-infected president removed his mask for what appeared to be a photo opportunity before entering the building.
Cuomo, who earlier this year continued to broadcast while he was infected with the disease, described Trump's behavior as "reshooting the scene for his own ad," and mocked the president's persona by saying, "I hold rallies and I tell you to ignore masks and I rip mine off as I vanquish the virus, for I am a leader. Fear not, COVID."
"What a bunch of bullsh*t," Cuomo concluded, describing how the virus "doesn't care about left and right. The virus does what's reasonable, 'you give me a chance I will spread," adding "the White House is literally what we fear the most, a rash of contagion called a cluster."
Cuomo also took a swipe at Trump's appearance in a presidential vehicle, which sparked controversy for possibly exposing Secret Service staff to the disease, saying: "He doesn't give a damn...He returned to a cluster and took his mask off. That is, 'covidiocy', he is a 'cov-idiot'".
In Monday's program, Cuomo continued with his strong language and refused to play the sound of the clip of Trump on the balcony.
He said: "He had his video crew capture that stupid scene again so he could put out propaganda, fronting a lie to his people once again—just like 'don't worry about the mask, don't worry about COVID, don't let it control your life.
Chris Cuomo says he won’t play the president’s White House “propaganda” video on CNN.
— Austin Kellerman (@AustinKellerman) October 6, 2020
“How much bullshit do you need in your life?”
😳 pic.twitter.com/nq3QBox502
Shaking his head Cuomo described the footage as "just propaganda, that's all it is," before adding, "I know there's sound to it but I'm not going to play it for you. Why should I? How much bull sh*t do you need in your life?" Newsweek has contacted CNN and the White House for comment.
On Monday Trump faced criticism in other quarters over a tweet saying: "Don't be afraid of Covid. Don't let it dominate your life."
Meanwhile, White House physician Sean Conley said: "Though he may not entirely be out of the woods yet, the team and I agree that all of our evaluations, and most importantly, his clinical status, support the president's safe return home."
The graphic below provided by Statista shows the countries with the most cases of COVID-19.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Brendan Cole is a Newsweek Senior News Reporter based in London, UK. His focus is Russia and Ukraine, in particular ... Read more
