By Colleen O’Connor
President Trump’s “Comeback Tulsa Rally” flopped. Over a million reserved tickets, but only 6,200 attended, which proves several alarming facts.
First, the nation’s much vaunted intelligence community and the President’ campaign “genius” were both AWOL.
Big question: Why didn’t anyone tell Trump?
His nominees head the CIA, the FBI, local and national Republican party apparatus. They remained silent? How about his “digitally superior” campaign team. They stayed mum? All too cowardly to inform the president that a disaster loomed? He shoots the messengers?
How in the world was the President of the United States allowed to get on a plane and fly to Tulsa without any knowledge that the overflow stage for a massive outdoor crowd was being torn down, due to no crowds, and that the arena itself was not even half-full?
Even amateurs know to choose a small room to force an overflow crowd that suggests popularity.
Trump’s Tulsa rally proved the opposite. Incompetence and ignorance and no great fandom.
Second Big Question: Did massive TikTok users, K-Pop fans and/or the Chinese government “rig” the reservations?
No, says Trump’s campaign manager. It was terrorists; the news of six infected Trump staffers; the fake media; and a possible thunderstorm. They insisted that they screened for bogus reservations, and still collected 300,000 good bookings. A crowd was guaranteed.
Except, those clever Tik-Tok teens booked their reservations and then declined to attend (at the last minute) because they were, “walking their plants, or feeding their rocks”… or just coughing while sick.
Young Gen Z punked their elders. Not a million. Not 300,000. Not even a half-full stadium. Understandably, Trump was furious.
Third Big Question: Where does that fury go next?
It is elementary in” fight or flight” jargon: “Never corner a coward or a wild animal.” Quietly walk backwards from a bear. Trap the lion in a net or a camouflaged deep hole. “Run, hide, and only as a last resort, confront,” an assailant.
Hence, Biden’s bunker campaign is winning “bigly.” Few gaffes. No proof of frailty or embarrassing photos ops. Stay still. Stay quiet. Stay in the bunker. Good plan.
Thus, the 2020 presidential election will not be Biden v. Trump. Only COVID-19 garners more fear; more attention, and more unpleasant outcomes than Trump himself.
The pandemic is the real threat to Trump. Not Biden.
It is not, “the economy, stupid,” or the Chinese, Russian, Mexican origins of the pandemic. It is the disease itself. Stealth-like; deadly; seemingly unstoppable; and wielding an invisible army of carriers. It affects everyone.
Coronavirus-19 has bigger Nielsen ratings and more frightening plots than any TV show; higher daily counts of infections, hospitalizations, and deaths than our last 4 wars combined; plus, a gripping and undecipherable strategy as yet unknown.
COVID-19 is its own horror story. Riveting, revolting and revolutionizing once normal existence.
Indeed, that existence, which forced nationwide lockdowns, also educated Americans about the science of a novel virus. What else was there to do indoors for weeks? Reading, TV, music, all became monotonous. The default position, became consuming cable 24-hour news; all about the pandemic.
Andrew Cuomo’s master call press briefings every day at 8:30 am (even Fox news carried them); delivered popular, science-based information; and Dr. Fauci became a national hero.
The scenes and stories from hospital ICUs; families of infected and dying patients; and doctors and nurses dominated the airwaves and main stream media. And will continue to do so.
COVID-19 has eclipsed the President. This invisible enemy has more invading bugs than any spy agency. Soon, the number of people who know someone in their circle of family, friends, neighbors or acquaintances, will dwarf attendees at any Trump rally.
His suggestions to take hydroxychloroquine as a preventative, or use “bleach on the insides;” or that the virus be eliminated in warm weather, or just disappear “like a miracle,” are the real culprits of his low turnout in Tulsa.
Trump did it to himself. The corona virus is not going away just because we are bored with it. It will defy the dismissive expectations that the first wave is over.
Indeed, a “second wave” may not becoming because the first wave may never end.
As Dr. Michael Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, warned, “I don’t see this slowing down through the summer or into the fall. I don’t think we’re going to see one, two and three waves. I think we’re going to just see one very, very difficult forest fire of cases.”
Neither Biden in his bunker, nor Trump in his Tower can compete with COVID-19’s deadly and riveting march.
Biden is smart to stay put. COVID-19 is already defeating Trump.
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Thanks Colleen for the new and refreshing perspective.