MEAWW.COM / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

Trump asks reporter to take off face mask during White House presser, Internet says 'he is going deaf'

Later on, in the news conference, Trump praised a reporter who did take off his mask while asking a question and said, 'You sound so clear,' Trump said, 'as opposed to everybody else'

President Donald Trump is once again courting controversy after he demanded that a reporter take off his mask while asking him a question at a news conference on September 7, even as America continues to lead the world in the highest number of Covid-19 cases with 6,276,365 infections and 188,941 deaths.

The statement came from Trump shortly after Jeff Mason of Reuters asked a question and Trump interrupted him and said, "You're going to have to take that off, please. You can take it off. How many feet away are you?” Mason appeared to take off his mask for a second but then seemed to think better of it and told Trump he'll speak "a lot louder".

Trump clearly did not like the pushback and continued insisting. "Well, if you don’t take it off, you're very muffled, so if you would take it off, it would be a lot easier." Mason proceeded to raise his voice and asked, “Is that better?” Trump looked quite annoyed and let out an audible sigh but conceded he could hear the reporter and said, "It's… better, yeah. It's better," he said, as he rolled his eyes.

Later on, in the news conference, Trump praised a reporter who did take off his mask while asking a question and said, "You sound so clear,” Trump said, "as opposed to everybody else."

As soon as the Internet got hold of the statement, people started reacting to it. One user called it a shameful act and said, "Shameful when tmp tries to shame a reporter into removing his mask. Trump then went after the Great John McCain, a good friend of Joe Biden. In my opinion, John would be wishing Joe well in this election and may well have stumped for Joe. John would not be stumping for Trump!!!"

Some called Trump "clueless" and said, "Donald Trump is living in a different reality. Trump is clueless. He shows his ignorance every day without fail."

Some started speculating that Trump is going deaf as one user commented, "My assessment... Trump is going deaf. I can hear them just fine. But to someone whose hearing is going, this might sound a bit muffled. The request to remove the mask could be a subtle indication that he needs to lip-read to understand. There have been other instances of this."

Another one said, "@realDonaldTrump must be losing his hearing. He often stands outside the helicopter without any hearing protection. He's going deaf. Everyone else could hear the reporter just fine. He's in terrible shape so it's no surprise he can't hear. #TrumpIsDeaf"

A user speculated the same pointed out at Trump's stroke controversy and said, "Repeated strokes can damage the sight and hearing. Trump squints constantly and now he is also obviously losing his hearing."

Some said, "People who are hard of hearing tend to cover up that fact because they can lip read to a small extent. Trump hates showing any form of 'weakness' because at his core, he's a petulant child."

Others said, "So then why does he wear a mask? Why do doctors wear masks? Why do we cover our mouths when we cough or sneeze? I’m pretty sure the science is not on your side."

Previously on September 3, Trump mocked Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden for wearing a face mask while speaking to a largely mask-less crowd in Pennsylvania, Trump asked his supporters if they know "a man that likes a mask as much" as Biden. "It gives him a feeling of security," the President said. "If I was a psychiatrist, I'd say this guy has some big issues."