Ever the masters of shock and awe, the Trump administration is at it again. Specifically, The Hill reports that a Trump official admitted that the Florida shooting and the ensuing debate has been a “reprieve” for the White House, which has been facing scandals on multiple fronts.
These scandals include the elevation of Rob Porter (a known domestic abuser) and the ever-present investigation into Russian collusion. Earlier this week, President Donald Trump even used the shooting to throw the Russia investigation’s legitimacy into question.
Very sad that the FBI missed all of the many signals sent out by the Florida school shooter. This is not acceptable. They are spending too much time trying to prove Russian collusion with the Trump campaign – there is no collusion. Get back to the basics and make us all proud!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 18, 2018
Tweets like this don’t make it easy for Trump’s White House to avoid the ire of the people, so scandal-free days are few and far between.
According to The Hill, the official’s account was this:
“For everyone, it was a distraction or a reprieve. … A lot of people here felt like it was a reprieve from seven or eight days of just getting pummeled…But as we all know, sadly, when the coverage dies down a little bit, we’ll be back through the chaos.”
To be clear, a Trump official is remarking upon the fact that the primary feeling in the White House when 17 children were shot dead in their own school – was a relief. That either says something profound about the size of scandal this administration attracts or the callousness with which they treat American lives – and possibly both.
This kind of insincerity hearkens back to when Donald Trump was just a candidate and underscores the fact that he has not changed. After the shooting at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, instead of empathizing with the 49 dead, the injured, and the families they left behind, Trump took the opportunity to remind everyone that he was right about “radical Islamic terrorism.”
Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don't want congrats, I want toughness & vigilance. We must be smart!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 12, 2016
Trump will hold a listening session with high schoolers this week about improving background checks, and if their social presence after the shooting is any indication, they will have quite a bit to say to him.
Image provided via Sonya N. Hebert (Obama White House Archives/Public Domain)
