Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Trump Dons a Mask and Says It's Patriotic
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 5 years ago on
July 21, 2020

Share

Donald Trump has yet to explain why he abandoned his personal practice of not wearing a face mask, but now that he has, the president wants everyone to know it.

Monday, Trump tweeted a black-and-white image of himself with a mask on that likely was taken July 11 during his visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

“We are United in our effort to defeat the Invisible China Virus, and many people say that it is Patriotic to wear a face mask when you can’t socially distance. There is nobody more Patriotic than me, your favorite President!” Trump said in the tweet.

Trump Mocked Biden for Wearing a Mask

Trump’s reluctance to follow the advice of medical experts and wear a mask during the coronavirus pandemic has political observers wondering what caused him to change his mind.

After all, Trump mocked presidential challenger Joe Biden earlier this year for wearing a mask.

And Trump famously said in April about mask-wearing: “… sitting in the Oval Office behind that beautiful Resolute Desk … I think wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens. I don’t know, somehow I don’t see it for myself. Maybe I’ll change my mind.”

Finally, Trump has said that he didn’t need to wear a mask because he and those around him are tested frequently for COVID-19.

Protesters, nearly all without masks, rally in support of President Donald Trump and of recalling Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday, July 18, 2020, in northeast Fresno. (GV Wire File)

Polls Show Biden Leading Trump

Perhaps advisers convinced him that it was important to model responsible behavior with America’s coronavirus death toll surpassing 141,000 and the economy reeling under the pandemic’s immense weight.

Or perhaps the latest polls inspired Trump to chart a new course.

The latest RealClear Politics average of major presidential polls shows Biden leading Trump by 8.6 percentage points nationally. Biden holds a double-digit lead in several polls conducted this month. And, the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll indicates that voters prefer Biden over Trump, 54%-34%, to handle COVID-19.

Whatever the president’s motivation, he’s removed the steam from one of the big culture war debates by indirectly saying it’s patriotic to wear a mask.

 

DON'T MISS

Measles Spreads to Central Texas; 5 States Have Active Outbreaks

UP NEXT

Startup Offers Controversial Microplastic Blood Cleansing Treatment

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Senate Confirms Mehmet Oz to Take Lead of Medicare and Medicaid Agency

2 hours ago

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

3 hours ago

Measles Spreads to Central Texas; 5 States Have Active Outbreaks

Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico reported new measles cases this week, with the outbreak expanding for the first time into central Texas. Alre...

9 minutes ago

9 minutes ago

Measles Spreads to Central Texas; 5 States Have Active Outbreaks

15 minutes ago

Trump Tariff Fears Erase $2 Trillion From US Stocks

19 minutes ago

Startup Offers Controversial Microplastic Blood Cleansing Treatment

Dr. Mehmet Oz, President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, seated right, gives a thumbs-up alongside his wife Lisa Oz, seated left, with friends and family after he testified at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, March 14, 2025. (AP/Ben Curtis)
2 hours ago

Senate Confirms Mehmet Oz to Take Lead of Medicare and Medicaid Agency

3 hours ago

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

Vice President Mike Pence hands the electoral certificate from the state of Arizona to Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., as he presides over a joint session of Congress as it convenes to count the Electoral College votes cast in November's election, at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021. (AP File)
3 hours ago

Pence Will Receive the Profile in Courage Award From the JFK Library for His Actions on Jan. 6

4 hours ago

Politics Turns Ugly for a Conservative Running for Fresno State Student Body President

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attends a joint news conference with Japan's Defense Minister Gen Nakatani at the Ministry of Defense in Tokyo Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Kiyoshi Ota/Pool Photo via AP)
4 hours ago

Pentagon’s Watchdog to Review Hegseth’s Use of Signal App to Convey Plans for Houthi Strike

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend