In the U.S., there are 7.8 million COVID-19 cases with more than 210,000 
deaths. Having initially praised the Chinese government's effectiveness in 
tackling the pandemic, Trump made a "U-turn," rejecting criticism of his 
handling of the fight against COVID-19 and describing it as the "Chinese 
Virus." 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OyY7wmCaDo

Read the original article here 
(https://news.cgtn.com/news/2020-09-11/Why-did-Trump-downplay-the-COVID-19-pande
mic--THQHXySxNe/index.html).

Documents released on August 31 by the U.S. House Select Subcommittee on 
Coronavirus show that top Trump administration officials downplayed the 
pandemic. "The White House has known since June that coronavirus cases were 
surging across the country," but the Trump administration has repeatedly called 
for a reopening of the economy. The administration's stance has contributed to 
58,000 more deaths. 

Since he was elected in 2016, Trump's top priority has been to win a second 
term in the White House. 

Even the pandemic and hundreds of thousands of deaths could not change his 
plan. 

Trump projected himself as "tough" on China by raising tariffs on Chinese 
goods. The whole act of condemning China is to help Trump keep the voters and 
the interest groups that support him onside.

Before the pandemic, the U.S. economy slowly climbed and the unemployment rate 
dropped. Trump bragged about the growth as his achievement. 

The big corporations and conservative interest groups that support Trump want a 
strong U.S. economy and a bull market. That's why the president focused on 
stock market performance but downplayed the pandemic.

Trump refused to wear a mask in public and attacked Democratic presidential 
candidate Joe Biden for wearing one. But when the president finally put on a 
mask in July, he called himself a patriot. 

Trump has politicized the pandemic by blaming it on other nations and shifting 
his responsibilities onto political rivals. 

There is no magic cure available before November's election. The only way to 
restart the U.S. economy is to first stop the spread of the virus.

SOURCE  CGTN