If you thought downplaying a deadly virus to the American people was a bad thing, welp, the folks at Fox News are here to explain just how wrong you are. And Trevor Noah is here to call them out.
On Thursday, Noah spotlighted the recent revelation that President Donald Trump admitted on tape that he downplayed COVID-19. While this seems like an outrageous scandal, “The Daily Show” host said he wasn’t surprised Fox News responded by trying to defend Trump by explaining why “lying to America about a deadly pandemic was the right move all along.”
Noah played a number of clips showing Fox personalities praising the president for not creating a panic over the disease (which has claimed more than 190,000 lives in the U.S.). Greg Gutfeld even compared the situation to a doctor seeing a spot on an X-ray, saying physicians don’t immediately freak out in such a situation.
Noah cut to the bottom line.
“The problem with Trump’s admission to Bob Woodward isn’t the fact that he tried to keep people calm, okay? It’s the ‘downplaying the virus’ part,” he said. “As crazy as it may seem, lots of people in America actually believe the things that President Trump says. So when Trump comes out and declares that the deep state made up corona to ruin his birthday, they listen.”
As for Gutfeld’s “doctors don’t panic” point, he noted, “They do get it checked out because it might be serious. They don’t tell you that, ‘You’ve got a spot on your X-ray, but don’t worry.’” And they don’t, as Noah added, aping words Trump once spoke, say, “One day it’s gonna disappear just like a miracle.”
Check out the rest of the clip for Noah’s assessment of Fox host Tucker Carlson trying to blame Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) for Trump’s troubles: