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Trump slammed as 'gutless' for comparing himself to Churchill during Nazi Blitz: Here's what happened back then

The Internet does not feel that Trump shares any traits with Churchill when it comes to handling crises. His critics said that Churchill never sugarcoated the extent of the threats posed by Nazi Germany

President Donald Trump has courted controversy again by comparing himself to former UK prime minister Winston Churchill. Trump, who has referenced Churchill before, appeared to compare his reaction to handling the coronavirus to that of the former British prime minister’s actions during the Blitz. Trump felt Churchill was calm when Hitler was bombing London.

In his September 10 rally at Freeland, Michigan Trump spoke how the British government advised its citizens to stay calm amidst World War II and that he was doing the same during the pandemic.“As the British government advised the British people in the face of the rally at World War II, keep calm and carry on. That’s what I did. This wackjob that wrote the book, he said, ‘Well, Trump knew a little bit.’ And they wanted me to come out and scream, ‘People are dying, we’re dying!’ No, no. We did it just the right way. We have to be calm. We don’t want to be crazed lunatics. We have to lead.” This bit of dialogue from Trump was immediately slammed as  'absurd' from a listener on social media. 

He continued, “When Hitler was bombing, I don’t know if you know this, when Hitler was bombing London, Churchill, a great leader, would oftentimes go to a roof in London and speak, and he always spoke with calmness. He said, ‘We have to show calmness.’ No, we did it the right way. And we’ve done a job like nobody.” After his remarks dropped, the Internet slammed Trump over his passive nature and staying mute on the pandemic, while most dug out the context of Churchill’s conduct in the past. 

How do Trump and Churchill differ?

Trump was mentioning the 1940s when Nazi Germany launched a bombing campaign against the United Kingdom during the Second World War called The Blitz. At that time, bombarding of English cities and breaking its spirit in WWII was the primary agenda of Hitler. Smithsonian Magazine quoted historian Erik Larson’s book ‘The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz’ where he assessed how Churchill stood strong against and willed his nation to resist.

In an interview with Smithsonian, Larson described Churchill’s courage amid the dangerous situations in WW-II. He said, “There are a lot of cases when an air raid was about to occur and Churchill would go to the roof and watch. This was how he was. He was not going to cower in a shelter during a raid. He wanted to see it. By day, he carried on as if there were no nightly air raids. This was part of his style, part of how he encouraged and emboldened the nation. If Churchill’s doing this, if he’s courageous enough, maybe we really don’t have so much to fear.”

He continued how Churchill would visit bombed regions and showed fearlessness and leadership. “ He would visit a city that had been bombed, and the people would flock to him. There is no question in my mind that these visits were absolutely important to helping Britain weather this period. This was leadership by demonstration. He showed the world that he cared and he was fearless.” He mentioned how Churchill was very clear-eyed about the threat from Germany and was resolute in increasing fighter strength. 

Churchill is best remembered for reportedly unifying Britain and making it overcome the horrors of The Blitz as per various media reports. Churchill’s private secretary, John Martin, wrote as reported in Atlantic that under Churchill’s leadership, Brits saw themselves as “protagonists on a vaster scene and champions of a high and invincible cause, for which the stars in their courses were fighting.”

However, the Internet does not feel that Trump shares any traits with Churchill when it comes to handling the coronavirus crises. The remark drew ire  from Trump’s critics, who maintained that Churchill never sugarcoated the extent of the threats posed by Nazi Germany. US rep Bill Pascrell Jr wrote how Trump has failed in combating the pandemic disaster. “Presides over the worst public health disaster in a century, 190,000 dead, compares himself to Churchill. This idiocy is endorsed by the entire republican party leadership.” 

Slamming Trump's comparison, one wrote: “Trump compares his decision to keep quiet about the COVID pandemic despite knowing its danger to Churchill telling Londoners to be calm amid the Nazi bombing campaigns.”

Reporter Daniel Dale wrote that Churchill was very transparent in comparison to Trump, “Oh man. Trump: "As the British government advised the British people in the face of World War II, keep calm and carry on. That's what I did." Churchill was famously blunt with the British people about how bad things could get.”

Others noted that if Trump was Churchill, it would have been hard to come out of The Blitz crises. “He’s such a liar, and he knows it. If Trump were Churchill, he’d have done nothing to protect the population from the Blitz, and just let everyone die, while denying the explosions were from German bombs.” 

Yet another user pointed out the difference between two leaders, “Telling people the truth about how bad things really are is a huge motivator. Churchill understood this: Trump is too weak and gutless even to explore the possibility.” 

Calling Trump and Churchill's leadership as vastly different, one observed: "YUGE difference. Londerers KNEW the bombing was dangerous, same as Churchill. WE DIDN'T KNOW how dangerous Covid was in Feb. tRump did. And DIDN'T TELL US."