July 21, 2020

Donald Trump Began a Press Conference by Talking About the Coronavirus. He Ended it by Sending an Accused Sex-Trafficker his Best Wishes.

The president had nice things to say about Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell.

Sarah Silbiger/CNP/Zuma

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In a reversal of his previous dismissive attitude toward the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump on Tuesday encouraged the widespread use of masks (despite his refusal to wear them in the past) and condemned large gatherings (despite having held a rally on June 20).

“Some areas of our country are doing very well. Others are doing less well,” he said, in his first coronavirus briefing since April. “It will probably, unfortunately, get worse before it gets better—something I don’t like saying about things, but that’s the way it is.”

Dr. Deborah Birx was present at the briefing, but Dr. Anthony Fauci was not. Fauci has said that he was not invited. Trump declined to comment on Fauci’s absence.

Despite the president’s newfound appreciation for the seriousness of the virus, the speech was not without its Trumpisms. He repeatedly referred to the coronavirus as “the China virus,” and, when asked whether he thought Ghislaine Maxwell—Jeffrey Epstein’s associate currently incarcerated on child sex trafficking charges—would turn in powerful men, he responded, “I just wish her well, frankly.”

“I’ve met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach,” he continued, “but I wish her well.”

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WE'LL BE BLUNT

It is astonishingly hard keeping a newsroom afloat these days, and we need to raise $253,000 in online donations quickly, by October 7.

The short of it: Last year, we had to cut $1 million from our budget so we could have any chance of breaking even by the time our fiscal year ended in June. And despite a huge rally from so many of you leading up to the deadline, we still came up a bit short on the whole. We can’t let that happen again. We have no wiggle room to begin with, and now we have a hole to dig out of.

Readers also told us to just give it to you straight when we need to ask for your support, and seeing how matter-of-factly explaining our inner workings, our challenges and finances, can bring more of you in has been a real silver lining. So our online membership lead, Brian, lays it all out for you in his personal, insider account (that literally puts his skin in the game!) of how urgent things are right now.

The upshot: Being able to rally $253,000 in donations over these next few weeks is vitally important simply because it is the number that keeps us right on track, helping make sure we don't end up with a bigger gap than can be filled again, helping us avoid any significant (and knowable) cash-flow crunches for now. We used to be more nonchalant about coming up short this time of year, thinking we can make it by the time June rolls around. Not anymore.

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Getting just 10 percent of the people who care enough about our work to be reading this blurb to part with a few bucks would be utterly transformative for us, and that's very much what we need to keep charging hard in this financially uncertain, high-stakes year.

If you can right now, please support the journalism you get from Mother Jones with a donation at whatever amount works for you. And please do it now, before you move on to whatever you're about to do next and think maybe you'll get to it later, because every gift matters and we really need to see a strong response if we're going to raise the $253,000 we need in less than three weeks.

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