President Trump awoke Thursday morning to newspapers in Georgia reporting he had thrown plans for reopening its economy into “disarray,” as his efforts to balance getting the coronavirus under control with the need to get people back to work begin to raise questions about his decisiveness.
Trump has sought to cultivate an image as a confident, strong leader. Georgia is a state he carried in 2016 and hopes to win again in November. His presidential campaign four years ago was premised on his managerial prowess. As he deals with the biggest crisis of his presidency, supporters and critics alike are wondering whether he will follow his gut, which seems inclined to get an economy halted by widespread lockdowns moving again, or the advice of medical experts who counsel continued social distancing as the only way to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
He is in danger of looking like he is waffling between the two.
These competing instincts came into focus as Trump disavowed Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s efforts to reopen the state’s businesses. “I told the governor of Georgia, Brian Kemp, that I disagree — strongly — with his decision to open certain facilities,” Trump said at the daily White House coronavirus briefing. “It’s just too soon. I think it’s too soon.”
But he also conveyed a sense of indecision: “I want him to do what he thinks is right,” Trump said of Kemp Wednesday. “But I disagree with him on what he’s doing.”
Trump’s remarks came just days after he took to Twitter to encourage anti-lockdown protesters to “LIBERATE” three states with Democratic governors who have been criticized for quarantine overreach.
The confusion was heightened by reports that Trump had initially held a supportive phone call with Kemp about his plans, and that experts on the federal coronavirus task force, led by Drs. Deborah Birx and Anthony Fauci, changed his mind (White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany denied this Thursday night). Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican ally of the president, has also expressed concern that Georgia was moving too fast and tweeted in support of the White House. Trump emphasized that Kemp’s actions “are in violation of the phase one guidelines for the incredible people of Georgia.”
Twitter reaction was swift. “Trump originally said we had coronavirus under control, then said never mind we need to lock down, then said never mind we’re opening on Easter, then said never mind we’re staying closed, then said never mind we’re opening, then said he disagrees with Georgia for opening,” complained conservative social media personality Matt Walsh.
Supporters of the president counter he is being measured in his response to the coronavirus, in effect triangulating between protesters demanding a swift reopening of the economy and epidemiologists who want to take it slow as cases and deaths continue to rise in much of the country. But even some Republicans worry that Trump, initially criticized for responding too slowly and increasingly under fire for wanting things back to normal too soon, may instead wind up with a reputation for indecision.
“The banner headline of the Atlanta paper today isn’t good for anybody,” said Alex Conant, a former communications adviser to Marco Rubio. “His poll numbers are already really low for a president facing a national crisis. I can’t remember another time in modern history when Americans rallied behind their governors more than their president.”
Recent polling shows broad support for continued social distancing, but Republicans are starting to worry more about the economy while senior citizens want to be safe from the virus. There is some evidence that heeding the first voting bloc could be driving the second one into presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden’s arms, complicating Trump’s reelection as much as the economic damage.
“The president, who was accused by Democrats as being an ‘authoritarian,’ has given due constitutional deference to governors to govern as they see fit with little to no federal preemptions,” said Bradley Blakeman, a former aide to President George W. Bush. “This is the way the government is supposed to work. It is akin to a parent letting their adult children make their own way. Many times a parent will disagree with the decisions of a child but gives the child the distance and respect they deserve to make their own decisions. It is healthy to have states make their own way.”
