Trump voters cut him slack on COVID-19. John Oliver lays out why they absolutely shouldn't.

President Trump, in his final flurry of rallies, is rolling his eyes at the COVID-19 pandemic, now killing about 1,000 Americans every day, John Oliver said on Sunday's Last Week Tonight. "For many, Trump's handling of the coronavirus is going to a significant factor in how they vote," but "a lot of voters are more than willing to give him the benefit of the doubt." They shouldn't, he argued. This is the "defining crisis" of Trump's presidency, and "his response has been such a disaster," you've probably forgotten half his mistakes.

COVID-19 isn't a new topic, Oliver said, "but we still thought that tonight — especially if you or someone you know also thinks that 'nothing more could have been done' — it would be worth taking a look at three crucial areas where more could very much have been done, specifically preparation, coordination, and communication."

Oliver laid out some of the ways Trump undid years of U.S. pandemic preparations and explained why his frequently touted China "travel ban wasn't a ban, wasn't early, and didn't do what he said it did." China did take "too long to be forthright with us about the virus," but Trump "acted unforgivably slowly" once we found out about it, he added. The president's PPE supply chain management "was a total shambles," and "it has been genuinely remarkable just how consistently Trump has undercut public health messaging."

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"I know that Trump badly wants everyone to believe that nothing more could have been done, but that's just not true — other countries have done more and suffered less," Oliver said. "This wasn't inevitable! And look, I shouldn't have to take 20 minutes to tell you that Trump mismanaged the pandemic," it's that self-evident.

"If Biden is elected, it's not like he's gonna magically end this pandemic," Oliver said. "But he'll at least take it seriously. And it's pretty bleak that that alone sounds good — but it really does." Look, he added, "this virus has taken so much from us — our peace of mind, our routines, and nearly a quarter of a million Americans — and it's frankly pathetic that in response, the only things that Trump has offered people in this country over the past eight months are damaging lies, staggering incompetence, and occasionally, when he's feeling generous, some sh--ty f--king pens." Watch his case against Trump, plus a disturbing and NSFW riff on Pinocchio, below. Peter Weber

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