President Donald Trump may be taking a different approach to the coronavirus, and CNN’s Jim Acosta is recognizing it.
“In the seven years I have covered the White House that is the most stunning briefing that I’ve ever sat through,” Acosta said after Tuesday’s press conference, adding, “It was just downright chilling.”
Acosta went on to explain the shift he has seen in Trump’s tone surrounding the coronavirus.
“This was President Trump changing his tune on the coronavirus. At one point he said it’s not the flu, it’s vicious,” Acosta said. “That’s after he has compared it to the coronavirus in the past.”
Watch his comments below:
Acosta continued on to discuss Trump’s claim that the nation will be entering a rough two-week period and how that is different from how he has described the coronavirus in the past.
He commented on the difficult decisions the Trump administration is going to have to make regarding the distribution of ventilators.
Acosta pressed Trump on his late start to addressing the coronavirus outbreak. He pointed out how Trump responded by saying he wanted to remain optimistic.
He reiterated he has seen a different side of Trump.
“Sitting in that room that close to him, I’ve never seen President Trump like this,” Acosta said. “And I think to some extent he is scared right now.”
The conversation shifted to Acosta discussing Trump’s apparent denial of the reality that governors are competing for medical equipment and how it may be too late to stockpile masks and send them when states need them.
The exchange closed with Acosta acknowledging that some “may not believe the president” and how himself and Anderson Cooper have been critical of Trump. He added that this does not take away from what he saw in the briefing room.
“This was a different Donald Trump tonight,” Acosta said. “I think he gets it.”
