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The U.S. death toll amid the COVID-19 pandemic surpassed China’s on Tuesday, the same day the White House projected that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could die from the respiratory disease outbreak.
Three months into the pandemic, stock market volatility resulted in the Dow Jones Industrial Average securing its worst first-quarter performance in history. The U.S. economy awaits resuscitation from a $2 trillion stimulus package, which the New York Times called the largest measure of its kind in modern American history. Jobless claims soared to 3.3 million, which is a quadrupling from a record set in 1982, amid an economic downturn rivaled only by the Great Depression before that.
But for President Donald Trump, COVID-19 spells ratings gold. In a widely scrutinized Twitter thread, Trump bragged about the amount of viewers his daily coronavirus press briefings have attracted: “President Trump is a ratings hit. Since reviving the daily White House briefing Mr. Trump and his coronavirus updates have attracted an average audience of 8.5 million on cable news, roughly the viewership of the season finale of ‘The Bachelor.’”
More consequential than a TV ratings boost, Trump’s approval ratings have also risen in recent weeks. As pundits and media organizations from the Los Angeles Times and New York Times to Vox and Yahoo dismiss and dissect the meager bump, Trump is less interested in this statistical improvement.
“I don’t want high approval ratings for this,” Trump said in a March 29 news briefing at the White House Rose Garden. “I wish we could have our old life back.”
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