ZCZC
BFF-31
HEALTH-VIRUS-US-POLITICS NEWSERIES
Trump calls Biden ‘not competent’ to lead the country
WASHINGTON, July 19, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – President Donald Trump
assailed likely opponent Joe Biden as “not competent” to lead the
country, speaking as polls over the weekend showed deepening voter
disenchantment with his own handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
“He’s shot, he’s mentally shot,” Trump said about Biden in a
wide-ranging interview with “Fox News Sunday.”
He said that if Biden is elected on November 3, he will “destroy
this country.”
Facing the multiple challenges of a spreading pandemic, racial
unrest and a struggling economy, Trump made several unfounded or
highly speculative accusations against the former vice president,
saying Biden would “triple your taxes” and “defund the police.”
He added, “Religion will be gone,” referring to Democratic
officials banning large church services to stem the virus spread.
Asked whether he would accept the election result in November, even
if he loses, Trump echoed his position of 2016, saying, “I have to see
… I’m not going to just say yes.”
The interview, which was taped in advance, came as new polling
results showed support for Biden surging as doubts about Trump’s
handling of the pandemic grow amid resurgence in many states.
Interviewer Chris Wallace told the president that a new Fox opinion
poll showed Biden with a substantial lead over Trump not only on his
ability to manage the pandemic (with a 17-point edge) and to deal with
racial unrest (by 21 points), but even — by a single point — on
handling the economy, long a Trump strong point.
And a new Washington Post-ABC News poll has Biden leading Trump
among registered voters nationwide by a resounding 15-point margin,
55-to-40 percent.
Trump dismissed such polling as “fake,” saying White House surveys
show him winning both nationally and in key swing states.
– ‘Mommy, Mommy…’ –
He repeatedly pummeled Biden, who has kept a relatively low profile
amid the restraints imposed by the pandemic.
Trump claimed that the Democrat wanted to “defund the police” — a
battle cry of some anti-racist protesters — and insisted that such
language was in a Biden policy document, though he was unable to
produce it when challenged by Wallace.
As he repeatedly questioned his rival’s mental acuity, Wallace
asked him directly if thought Biden was senile.
“I don’t want to say that,” Trump replied. “I say he’s not
competent to be president.”
He questioned whether the Democrat could pass a cognitive ability
test that he said he had “aced,” and said the former vice president
would fall apart under tough questioning.
“Let Biden sit through an interview like this, he’ll be on the
ground crying for Mommy. He’ll say, ‘Mommy, Mommy, please take me
home.'”
– ‘Envy of the world’ –
Trump again defended his handling of the pandemic, claiming that
“we are the envy of the world” on testing; and, of his early
prediction that the virus would someday disappear, said, “I’ll be
right eventually.”
He again opposed any national mandate for mask-wearing, saying, “I
want people to have a certain freedom.”
Referring to the racial unrest in the country, and a recent spike
in violent crime in some cities, the president blamed “Democrat-run
cities,” which he said were “stupidly run.”
Asked about statistics showing American blacks are twice as likely
to be shot and killed by police as whites, Trump replied, “Many whites
are killed also. You have to say that.”
And he equated those who fly the Confederate flag with those saying
that “Black Lives Matter,” adding, “It’s freedom of speech.”
– ‘Long overdue’ –
Trump again stated his opposition to renaming US military bases
named after Confederate generals — even after the military supported
the idea.
“I don’t care what the military says,” the president said.
“We’re going to name it after the Reverend Al Sharpton?” he asked
rhetorically, referring to a prominent African-American civil rights
leader.
There was no immediate response to the interview from Biden or his
campaign, though the former vice president did tweet that “Banning the
Confederate flag from military installations was long overdue.”
On other subjects, Trump said the economy was “doing very well,”
even as millions remain jobless, with some states reimposing
lockdowns. The stock market, he said, was near record highs.
BSS/AFP/MRU/2257hrs