The president’s experience
with the coronavirus —
and the reaction of some
Democrats to the news of his
diagnosis — may very well increase
the likelihood that he
wins re-election.
While at Walter Reed Medical
Center, President Donald
Trump recorded a four-minute
video message to the nation. In
it, he clearly articulated why
he did not barricade himself
in the White House this year,
despite constant attacks from
the media and Democrats that
he was not taking the virus seriously
because he continued
public events.
In addition to effusively
praising the medical professionals
at the facility, Trump
said, “I had no choice. I just
didn’t want to stay in the White
House. I was given that alternative:
‘Stay in the White House,
lock yourself in, don’t ever
COURIER L 40 IFE, OCT. 9-15, 2020
THE RIGHT
VIEW
Bob Capano
leave, don’t even go to the Oval
Offi ce, just stay upstairs and
enjoy it. Don’t see people.’”
But, he said, “I had to be
out front. This is America,
this is the United States, this
is the greatest country in the
world, this is the most powerful
country in the world. I
can’t be locked up in a room
upstairs, totally safe, and just
say, ‘Hey whatever happens,
happens.’ As a leader you have
to confront problems.’”
He concluded by saying,
“We’re going to beat this coronavirus.”
For most Americans who
are not fueled by their hatred
of Trump, these words make
complete sense and are a rational
explanation of his decision
to continue his public appearances
rather than staying in a
basement.
He should have articulated
this message much sooner, but
by doing it now — while battling
the virus himself — he
only amplifi es it. Voters still on
the fence about the upcoming
election, especially in swing
states, may very well be swayed
to the president’s corner.
Americans want to see and
hear from their president —
especially in times of crisis.
Like him or not, no one can
deny that Trump has been
a continued, constant public
force throughout the pandemic.
And now, Trump can
directly identify and relate
with those that have been affected
by the coronavirus.
Some Democrats outright
wished for his death and said
he deserved to suffer from the
coronavirus. Zara Rahim,
who was the national spokeswoman
for Hillary Clinton
during her 2016 presidential
campaign against Trump, and
also a staffer to former President
Barack Obama tweeted,
“It’s been against my moral
identity to tweet this for the
past four years, but, I hope
Trump dies.”
House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi all but said the president
deserved to get the coronavirus
when on MSNBC she likened
Trump’s actions to a “sort
of a brazen invitation for something
like his to happen.”
I don’t see this playing well
with key undecided voters.
On Monday, as Trump was
preparing to leave Walter Reed
he tweeted, “Don’t be afraid of
Covid. Don’t let it dominate
your life. We have developed…
some really great drugs and
knowledge.”
My hunch is more Americans
believe in this message,
rather than in the lockdown
doom and gloom one of Dems.
Bob Capano has worked
for Brooklyn Republican and
Democrat elected officials,
and has been an adjunct political
science professor for
over 15 years. Follow him on
twitter @bobcapano.
OPINION
Trump’s COVID bump
A little bit of everything
This issue, I’m fulfi lling
a long-held goal of publishing
a column that is
a bunch of little segments!
***
There’s some uncertainty
about how heavy an albatross
Bill de Blasio will be
in next year’s mayoral primary.
Seems like de Blasio
was relatively popular with
Democratic primary voters
for the fi rst fi ve years of his
tenure while other New Yorkers
were luke-warm on him
at best. Now it feels like everyone
has turned on him,
though it’s possible he is still
popular with some parts of
the Democratic base.
Why they’d still like him
is anybody’s guess.
Ironically, or perhaps predictably,
de Blasio’s unpopularity
will likely harm the female
candidates in the race
more than the male ones. Except
for Dianne Morales, all
the female candidates in or
exploring the race — Maya
Wiley, Kathryn Garcia, and
Loree Sutton — worked for
de Blasio. Meanwhile, none
of the potential male candidates
— Eric Adams, Scott
Stringer, Shaun Donovan,
or Ray McGuire — have. The
candidate for whom this is
likely to be the biggest issue
is Wiley, who employs several
former de Blasio staffers
as advisors and once referred
to herself as the mayor’s “ideological
soulmate.”
***
There’s de Blasio-related
uncertainty in the race for
Brooklyn Borough President
as well. Will First Lady Chirlane
McCray run? It’s been
rumored for 10 months, since
Assemblywoman Rodneyse
Bichotte replaced Frank Seddio
as head of the Brooklyn
Democratic Party. I polled 10
smart insiders and they’re
now in total disagreement
about whether she’ll run. It’s
starting to seem late.
I think McCray not running
relies on her realizing
how fundamentally unpopular
she and the mayor are
right now. How’s that going
to happen? Or maybe I’m
wrong and they’re still popular.
I do believe she might
still try to run — but if so,
she’ll drop out by the time
voting starts, and so she
maybe matters less in all
these calculations.
There’s also a rumor that
tall, affable Councilman Robert
Cornegy will be withdrawing
from the borough
president’s race. He’s raised
a decent amount of money
for the campaign, but the last
disclosure reports show he
had to spend a large amount
of it on fundraising. Assemblywoman
Jo Anne Simon
just jumped into the race,
and Councilman Antonio
Reynoso has just received
the endorsements of Public
Advocate Jumaane Williams
and State Sen. Julia Salazar.
Hospital executive Khari
Edwards and Councilman
Mathieu Eugene are also
expected to run — maybe
Councilman Mark Treyger
still will, too.
***
Bay Ridge Councilman
Justin Brannan’s ambition to
be City Council Speaker is no
secret. He almost certainly
can’t get there if all the citywide
elected offi cials in 2022
are male. Will this cause him
to support Maya Wiley for
mayor?
Is being City Council
Speaker even worth it anymore?
What happened to the
subsequent careers of all the
previous speakers? What happened
to the subsequent careers
of Bill de Blasio and Jumaane
Williams after they
each failed to become speaker?
I’m Justin’s friend so I’m
rooting for his loss.
Nick Rizzo is a former Democratic
District Leader and a
political consultant who lives
in Greenpoint. Follow him on
Twitter @NickRizzo.
WORDS OF
RIZZDOM
Nick Rizzo