New Lincoln Project ad presents brutal timeline of Trump's coronavirus response


President Trump is the narrator of the Lincoln Project's latest ad against him.
Titled "Failure," it presents a brutal timeline of his response to the coronavirus crisis, beginning with Trump stating on Jan. 22, "We have it totally under control. One person coming in from China. It's going to be just fine." From there, the messages are similarly nonchalant, with Trump saying on Feb. 25 the country is "very close to a vaccine" and declaring on Feb. 27, "One day, it's like a miracle, it will disappear."
As the ad continues, and Trump calls the coronavirus a "new hoax" (Feb. 28) and asks if injecting disinfectant could get rid of it (April 23), a tally appears, showing the U.S. death toll from the virus. It goes up steadily, and reaches 113,000 around June 20, when Trump is shown telling supporters in Tulsa that he has done "a phenomenal job" leading the country through the pandemic.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The ad ends on July 21, with a clip of Trump standing in front of reporters during his first coronavirus briefing in months. The pandemic, he says, will "probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better. That's the way it is." In a comment under the video on YouTube, the Lincoln Project refers to the coronavirus as #TrumpVirus, and says, "We could have won, but our 'wartime' president surrendered." Watch the ad below. Catherine Garcia
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
How medical imposters are ruining health studies
Under the Radar Automated bots and ‘lying’ individuals ‘threaten’ patient safety and integrity of research
-
‘How can I know these words originated in their heart and not some data center in northern Virginia?’
instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Can Trump deliver a farmer bailout in time?
Today's Big Question Planting decisions and food prices hang in the balance
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ rallies
Speed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
-
DOJ indicts John Bolton over classified files
Speed Read Continuing the trend of going after his political enemies, Trump prosecutes his former national security adviser
-
Trump, Putin set summit as Zelenskyy lands in DC
Speed Read Trump and Putin have agreed to meet in Budapest soon to discuss ending the war in Ukraine
-
Courts deal setbacks to Trump’s Chicago operations
Speed Read President Donald Trump cannot deploy the National Guard in Illinois
-
Pentagon reporters turn in badges after refusing rules
Speed Read They refused to sign a restrictive new press policy imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
-
Supreme Court points to gutting Voting Rights Act
speed read States would no longer be required to consider race when drawing congressional maps
-
Trump says he authorized covert CIA ops in Venezuela
Speed Read He is also considering military strikes inside the country
-
‘Vile, racist’ leaked chats roil Young Republicans
Speed Read Leaders of Young Republican groups made racist, antisemitic and violent comments in private chats