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An 鈥極ctober surprise鈥� unlike any other
Mark Sappenfield
At the end of a remarkable few days, it鈥檚 worthwhile to look back. After a weekend in which President Donald Trump was hospitalized with the coronavirus, followed by confused and contradictory reports and now a return to the White House, what are we to take away?
Below, you鈥檒l see Linda Feldmann鈥檚 article on how the situation could reflect on the administration鈥檚 transparency. But it鈥檚 also worth noting that, for Mr. Trump himself, very little seems to have changed. Most obviously, he鈥檚 doubled down in saying that concerns about the coronavirus are overstated. In a tweet, he that 鈥渟ometimes over 100,000鈥� people die from the flu every year. 鈥淎re we going to close down our Country?鈥� he asked. 鈥淣o.鈥� He conspicuously took off his mask the moment he arrived at the White House.
By contrast, after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recovered from the coronavirus, his tone and demeanor changed. The hardness of his stances on Brexit and the National Health Service shifted to humility, gratitude, and empathy. 鈥淎ll of his thoughts are with those affected by this illness,鈥� . For a time, at least, his polling numbers shot upward.
If anything, political lines in the United States seem to be set more firmly now. As supporters praise Mr. Trump鈥檚 return to work, critics are outraged by a mindset they say endangers the nation and those around him. In hyperpolarized times, it seems, 鈥淥ctober surprises鈥� are surprising only in revealing how little even the most extraordinary events can change.
