Stelter: Trump Hospital Departure Not a Real Show of Strength, But a Performative Show of Strength — ‘What Strongmen Do’

Monday, upon President Donald Trump’s departure from Walter Reed Hospital, CNN’s Brian Stelter proclaimed Trump’s departure, which was caught on camera live, to be “performative” and called it the product of something you might see in an “autocratic regime.”

“It’s not a real show of strength but its a performative show of strength,” Stelter said. “This is what strongmen do in autocratic regimes. Of course, thankfully, we are in a democracy. This is the kind of thing you see from strongmen who want to appear to be leading. It’s a ‘dear leader’ sort of approach. And I think that is what we are seeing on our television screen. Meanwhile, there are big questions about the cover-up. You know, why won’t they tell us about his testing history, when he was tested? We’ve moved from this possibly being a cover-up to actually being a cover-up. And whether the President is at Walter Reed or back at the White House, reporters are going to keep demanding answers to those questions.”

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