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Trump’s Most Deadly Alternative Fact

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Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts. – Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan

Q3 2020 hedge fund letters, conferences and more

Lies About His Own Inauguration Crowd

Remember when President Donald Trump blatantly lied about the size of his inauguration crowd, claiming it was the largest in history? Photos from the National Park Service clearly showed that Barack Obama’s first inauguration was much larger.

Trump’s minions then doctored the photos, and his counsel, Kellyanne Conway, even explained away Trump’s deceptions by calling them “alternative facts.”

Donald Trump certainly does like to put things in the best possible light, even if they’re not the gospel truth. But his lie about the relative size of his inaugural crowd was relatively harmless. The same cannot be said about his continual lying about the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Crisis Had Turned A Corner

Back in February and March – even though he was well aware of its deadly potential – the president was blithely predicting the virus would soon vanish as the warmer weather set in. In the meanwhile, he did very little to prepare our nation for the coming deadly outbreak.

Even after more than 200,000 Americans had died, and the virus was likely entering its third wave, Trump was repeatedly suggesting that the crisis had “turned a corner.” Indeed, on September 29th, during the first presidential debate, he mocked his rival, Joe Biden: “I don’t wear masks like him. Every time you see him, he’s got a mask.”

So here we were, nine months into the pandemic, and against the best advice from Dr. Anthony Fauci and every other epidemiologist, our president was telling Americans that it was OK to not wear a mask or socially distance.

Even after contracting the virus himself – very likely at his super-spreader White House reception for his Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett – Trump continues holding rallies where his audience is packed together, and most are not wearing masks.

Trump’s Biggest Lie: 85% Of The People Wearing Masks Catch The Coronavirus

But on Thursday, Trump told biggest lie about mask-wearing – and perhaps the most blatant and deadly lie he has ever told. In the morning, he told Fox Business anchor Stuart Varney, “Then you see CDC come out with a statement that eight-five percent of the people wearing masks catch it?”

He would repeat this statement that evening at the NBC townhall moderated by Savannah Guthrie. So please think about what he said.

Maybe I have a little advantage here because I’ve written a bunch of math books, so his statement just jumped out at me. Can you see why saying that eighty-five percent of the people wearing masks catch the virus is absurd?

First, only a very small percentage of people wearing masks actually catch the virus. And second, the statement strongly implies that wearing a mask actually causes the virus.

That’s not just crazy, but it’s amazingly stupid. And Trump, a man who apparently never admits a mistake, has not retracted it.

So, our president is telling us the CDC says that wearing a mask will very likely cause us to contract the coronavirus. This is not only his stupidest lie, but his most deadly.

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