Chuck Todd: It 'Seemed Like' Trump Is 'Afraid' to Lead While We Are Struggling

Friday on MSNBC, network anchor Chuck Todd said it “seemed” as if President Donald Trump was afraid to lead because he did not take questions from reporters following his White House announcement earlier in the day.

After Trump left the podium without taking questions, Todd said, “All right, President Trump with a not taking questions at all. Deciding with his announcement on the various ways he’s going to attempt to punish China over their decision to essentially erase the treaty they originally agreed to with Hong Kong. Look, it’s not lost, I think, on a lot of people to see number one, Katy, he had nothing else to say. He went right to that, stuck to the teleprompter, and walked right out. I think that tells us how he’d like to engage in the Minnesota issue.”

Co-host Katy Tur said, “I think you’re right there. There’s a city that is smoldering right now, there are people across this country, the black community is in pain, there is a pandemic, and the president tried to clear it all up, or at least clear his part in potentially inflaming those tensions with a tweet earlier today. Didn’t want to take any questions from reporters.”

Todd said, “I got to ask, is the president afraid to lead right now? To not engage at all, I just— that seemed like he was afraid of this. He doesn’t know what to say.”

He added, “We’re struggling as a country right now, and that’s — no matter what you think — the president of the United States can’t bring himself to say anything about a Midwestern city that’s smoldering.”

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