We already knew that this falls campaign, with Donald Trump fighting for his political survival, would be crazy, overwhelming, and exhausting. But, no matter how much weve come to expect the worst, its still a shock when it happens. At least it should be. On Wednesday, Trump was asked what should have been a simple question: Do you commit to a peaceful transfer of power? There is only one answer to this question in America. The answer is yes. But not for Trump. Well, were gonna have to see what happens, he responded. You know that Ive been complaining very strongly about the ballots. And the ballots are a disaster. Further pressed, he added, Well want to haveget rid of the ballots and youll have a verywell have a very peaceful... There wont be a transfer, frankly. Therell be a continuation.

No wonder, then, that Washington has been in a full uproar for weeks over the constitutional crisis that may ensue after the vote, if the results are too close to call or if there is a winner and Trump doesnt like who it is. In the wake of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburgs death, a week ago, Trump said he wants to make sure that a ninth, presumably loyal, Justice is in place before the election, in case the Court is where the outcome of the election ends up. And he appears to have the Republican votes in the Senate to make it happen.

So, yes, the prospect of the upcoming election shouldand doesinspire dread. But so does the prospect of what tomorrow might bring from the Presidentand the next day, and the day after that. The election is still forty days from now. How will we get through the rest of this week? This month? Consider that the following are things that Trump has done in the course of this long, enervating, and not-yet-over September, every single one worthy of front-page scandal, of career-ending political damage for an American elected official:

He said its an amazing thing that the coronavirus affects virtually nobody, a few hours before the United States officially surpassed two hundred thousand deaths from the pandemic.

He said that Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the worlds premier infectious-disease agency, did not know what he was talking about regarding the timetable for a coronavirus vaccine. And that Redfield did not know what he was talking about in urging the public to wear masks, to prevent infection.

He said that some people dont think mask-wearing is necessary during the pandemic. When pressed about who thinks this, at an ABC News town call, he said, Waiters. A couple days later, he was asked the same question. He again said, Waiters.

He said that there would be a vaccine in October. Or November. Or very soon. And that it would be available for everyone immediately. All of which is at odds with what the governments top public-health officials have testified to under oath.

When told this week that the Food and Drug Administration would make standards as stringent as possible for approving the vaccine, in order to increase public confidence in it, he accused his own scientific agency of being political. He then said that the F.D.A.s standards could not be implemented unless the White House approved them, and that the White House has not done so.

He said that U.S. deaths from COVID-19 would be very low if you just didnt count those who had died in blue states. That is both inaccurate and very, very alarming coming from someone whose title is President of the United States. He also said that he would give himself an A-plus for his handling of the pandemic, and that he has saved millions of lives.

He said that the Nov 3rd election result may NEVER BE ACCURATELY DETERMINED, and that Democratic governors may somehow steal ballots rather than let them be counted.

He said that climate change was nonexistent and also that it would just start getting cooler, just you watch. When told that the science does not agree with him, he said that the science is wrong. I dont think science knows, actually, he added.

He touted a super-duper secret hydrosonic missile that the Pentagon is going to deploywhich may or may not be a new hypersonic missile.

He retweeted a gif calling his Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, a pedophile. He retweeted a video that made it look as though Biden had played a song called Fuck tha Police at a campaign event, which, needless to say, he had not.

He told the Fox News host Jeanine Pirro that Biden was on performance-enhancing drugs of some kindI think theres probably, possibly, drugs involved, he saidand then he elaborated on his theory during a campaign rally full of unmasked supporters. Dont underestimate him, Trump told them. Look, hes been doing this for forty-seven years,andI got a debate coming up with this guy. No, its true. You never know, you never know. They gave him a big fatshotin theass, andhe comes outandfor two hours hes better than ever before.

He compared himself to Winston Churchill. He compared himself to Abraham Lincoln. He said that Democrats are planning to destroy suburbia and put Senator Cory Booker in charge of it. He even said that Ruth Bader Ginsburgs last wish, as relayed by her granddaughterthat her Supreme Court seat not be filled by Trumpwas a fabrication cooked up by his Democratic opponents.

This September seems to be the ultimate test of whether we really, truly, finally have run out of outrage. Reading back through this list, its hard to conclude anything else. When Ginsburg died, it took less than a day for Trump to announce that he would try to replace her before the election. I was not surprised in the least bit. When Trumpafter complaining for months about a rigged election, just because he is behind in the pollssaid on Wednesday that he would not agree in advance to a nonviolent transfer of power, his words were abhorrent but not at all revelatory.

At a press conference on Tuesday, the day the U.S. officially passed two hundred thousand deaths from the pandemic, Trump was asked why he had not said anything about the grim milestone. He listened to the reporters question, then turned away. Uh, anybody else? he asked. Because of all the horrors and lies that preceded it, and all that are sure to follow, the Presidents callous disregard was not a major story but just another viral video in a news cycle full of them. Trump has succeeded in conditioning us to believe that the weeks news, while awful, is less so because the awfulness is so consistent. Awful is the new Trumpian normal, which is pretty amazing when you consider that the old Trump-era normal was already pretty bad. He has rendered us collectively incapable of outrage, just when we need it most. If we cant be appalled at the Presidents indifference toward two hundred thousand dead Americans, then there is nothing left that can horrify us. After all, the COVID-19 death toll so far is the biggest mass-casualty event in American history aside from the Civil War, the Second World War, and the 1918 flu pandemic.

Read the original post:

Here Are Twenty Other Disturbing, Awful Things That Trump Has Said This Month, and Its Not Over Yet - The New Yorker