Friday, May 18, 2018

POLITICO REPORTER DEFENDS TRUMP'S IGNORANCE

Bill Gates has America's largest stash of fuck-you money, so he can say this without fearing the wrath of Trump:
Bill Gates discloses in newly revealed footage that President Trump twice asked him to clarify the difference between HIV and human papillomavirus (HPV).

MSNBC’s “All in With Chris Hayes” aired footage Thursday night of the Microsoft founder speaking at a Gates Foundation event, telling the crowd about two meetings he had with Trump, one at Trump Tower during the presidential transition and another at the White House last year.

“Both times he wanted to know if there was a difference between HPV and HIV,” Gates said. “So I was able to explain that those were rarely confused with each other.”
Unfortunately, there's always someone who's willing to give Trump the benefit of the doubt, at least up to a point. This time it's Politico's Dan Diamond:



Diamond is right about point (2) -- it would be dangerous if Trump, who's a skeptic, ever convenes the commission on vaccines he once seriously considered creating. But point (1)? Sorry, but age is no excuse for Trump.

Diamond elaborated:




Yes, Trump is an "older American." But he's the president of the United States. There are plenty of subjects on which he's allowed to be just another old guy. I assume he doesn't know the difference between XXXTentacion and Lil Uzi Vert. (Probably he's never even heard of either.) That's fine. It's not a problem if a president doesn't know such things.

But HIV and HPV? Sorry, that's policy stuff. He's supposed to know that. (He also has a son who's at the age when he should be getting the HPV vaccine, according to the CDC.)

But I'm discussing Trump as if he's a normal president and a normal father of a twelve-year-old. We know he's ignorant and incurious. We know he doesn't study anything and wings everything. We know he's simply not interested in learning new things. (We don't really need "more details" to know why he asked about the distinction twice.) And within his family, we know he doesn't do any parenting himself -- he never changed a diaper (by his own admission) and never played with his kids in the park, according to his first wife.

Diamond went on to tweet this:



We know the answer to that: Of course it wouldn't be different. Trump is doing what the religious right wants him to do. Trump always does what the religious right wants him to do. Knowledge wouldn't affect his decision -- he's been handed a to-do list, and he's dutifully checking items off, as Diamond knows, or ought to.

Your media at work, folks.

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