Donald Trump wants to be seen as a leader and a statesman, carrying his nation through this national emergency.

But by stoking the protesters across the country who are challenging the lockdown and social distancing measures in place to deal with the spread of the novel coronavirus, Trump actually will have blood on his hands.

“It says to me that the president is willing to risk the lives of people who believe in him so that he can have advantages like re-election and things like that. He’s literally willing to sacrifice the lives of Americans for personal gain and that’s deeply disturbing to me,” said Keith Ellison, the attorney general of the state of Minnesota, one site of the protests.

The protests came just the other day to Annapolis, Md., despite the fact that Gov. Larry Hogan (R) has made it clear that Maryland is nowhere near to “reopening.”

“Our case numbers are still growing each day and the number of deaths is continuing to increase,” said Hogan at a Friday news conference.

“I want to get our economy going as quickly as possible but we’re also going to have to do that in a safe manner,” Hogan added.

And yet another protest–this one in Texas–saw the agitators chanting, “Fire Fauci,” referring to Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US immunologist who has been closely advising Trump throughout the pandemic.

Yet did Trump speak up in defense of Dr Fauci? Of course not.

As has been the case so often throughout the coronavirus pandemic, while Trump is off being his usual irresponsible and hateful self, it’s been New York Gov Andrew Cuomo (D) who’s demonstrated the true statesman-like leadership to get Americans through the crisis.

“The emotion in this country is as high as I can recall, people are frustrated, we’re anxious, we’re scared, we’re angry,” Cuomo said during one of his recent daily briefings, emphasizing that the crisis is mentally and economically traumatic. “Look, if you have partisan divisions splitting this nation now, it’s going to make it worse… This is no time, and no place for division. We have our hands full as it is. Let’s just stay together, and let’s work it through.”

Of course, Cuomo is absolutely correct, and the protests are no doubt a manifestation of the protesters’ anxiety, fear and frustration.

Do we allow ourselves to become manipulated by Trump and people like him, just because it’s a convenient outlet?

Or do we, as Cuomo suggests, put those emotions to positive use and make the contributions and sacrifices that this emergency continues to call for?

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