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Trump Mocked for Mistakenly Including a Fraction in Misleading Tweet About Virus Testing
President Donald Trump famously claimed that he was a "very stable genius," but in a tweet early Thursday morning, he further indicated that his genius doesn't extend to fractions or punctuation.
The President was once again attempting to dismiss the United States' unsavory distinction of having more cases of the virus than any other country in the world.
Trump declared on Twitter that for the "1/100th time" the United States has more cases because its testing is more expansive.
For the 1/100th time, the reason we show so many Cases, compared to other countries that haven’t done nearly as wel… https://t.co/Bx6LOKJHT1— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump) 1594298373.0
The oft-repeated claim is misleading. Though expanded testing does diagnose more cases, these cases exist irrespective of the testing. What's more, positive diagnoses aren't shrinking in proportion to the testing. In states like Arizona, Florida, and Texas, the positive diagnoses are rising at a rate that dwarfs testing expansion.
Trump frequently claims that the testing is the sole reason for the rising number of cases, but this time it was his misuse of fractions that generated mockery.
The President presumably meant to say for the hundredth time, rather than the 1/100th time, and people noticed.
If you're a math teacher please print this out, frame it, and point to it every time a kid says "why do we have to… https://t.co/JeqZQk9cV7— Chasten Buttigieg (@Chasten Buttigieg) 1594303853.0
@realDonaldTrump You are eleventy million percent bad at math.— The Hoarse Whisperer (@The Hoarse Whisperer) 1594298771.0
@realDonaldTrump 1/100th? This is one one-hundredth of a time? Does that meant the first time is 28,000 characters… https://t.co/mXxsweuN4A— Walter Shaub (@Walter Shaub) 1594300565.0
@realDonaldTrump I know the bar is set really low but this is honestly one of the dumbest tweets I've ever seen on this website.— Derek Bodner (@Derek Bodner) 1594299646.0
@mmpadellan @realDonaldTrump Narrator: he did not, in fact, understand how fractions work.— Emily H (@Emily H) 1594301121.0
In her new tell-all memoir—Too Much and Never Enough—Trump's niece asserts that Trump paid someone to take his SAT.
The tweet gave that claim credence for some.
@realDonaldTrump We are reminded who didn’t take the math portion of his SATs— Michael Tisserand (@Michael Tisserand) 1594301569.0
@realDonaldTrump Dude, do you not know how fractions work? Lol, silly question. 1/100th = . 01 No wonder you had… https://t.co/ONe4Detq51— BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@BrooklynDad_Defiant!) 1594298987.0
@realDonaldTrump You should have paid someone to write this tweet for you.— Marie Connor (@Marie Connor) 1594304082.0
@realDonaldTrump “For the 1% time...” And you doubt he paid someone to take his SATs?— BallsQuarantined (@BallsQuarantined) 1594300881.0
They didn't hesitate to debunk the substance of the tweet either.
@realDonaldTrump NY: MORE TESTING, FEWER CASES I will keep posting this until Trump stops lying. In NY, more testi… https://t.co/RTxP8y8in7— MURRAY 🗽 (@MURRAY 🗽) 1594300037.0
@realDonaldTrump Denmark: 1 test per 5 residents US: 1 test per 8.5 residents Cases yesterday: Denmark: 12 US: 61,848— Brian Klaas (@Brian Klaas) 1594300840.0
@realDonaldTrump We have 8-10 times more people getting infected than can get tested. We are not keeping up. People… https://t.co/W6HJdAde0D— Mia Farrow (@Mia Farrow) 1594301580.0
There have now been over three million cases in the United States.