Published 13:39 IST, September 8th 2020
Trump asks reporter to 'remove face mask' as it 'muffled' question, watch his response
Trump told Mason that his mask “muffled” question, in which case, Mason, a former president of White House Correspondents’ Association, repeated the question.
On September 7, US President Donald Trump asked a reporter during a press briefing to “remove face mask” while asking a question. The journalist, however, refused to comply and instead said that he would speak louder to be more audible. In response to it, Trump told Jeff Mason that his mask “muffled” the question, in which case, Mason, a former president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, repeated his question politely during the ongoing North Portico press conference.
In a live stream segment shared by another journalist, Aaron Rupar on his official Twitter handle from the clip of the press conference, posted by the White House, Trump can be seen demanding Mason to “take that [mask] off”. While Mason, who briefly reaches for the mask, decides to keep it on in view of the coronavirus pandemic. He says he’ll speak “a lot louder.”President Trump then interrupts him, saying, “You’re going to have to take that off, please. You can take it off. How many feet away are you?”Mason then proceeds with his question, asking, “Is that better?” Trump insists, “Well, if you don’t take it off, you’re very muffled, so if you would take it off, it would be a lot easier.” When Mason does not completely remove the mask, Trump gets quite annoyed and scoffs as he tells the other reporters "It’s … better, yeah. It’s better.”
Most "innocent guy" to hold office
Later on, in the press conference, Trump lauded another reporter who took off his mask to question. “You sound so clear,” Trump commented, “as opposed to everybody else.” Earlier in May, Trump and reporter Mason had a separate back and forth over the use of face mask when similarly, Trump had asked Mason to “take that mask off”. On Mason’s refusal to comply, Trump launched a verbal assault, saying, “Oh OK, because you want to be politically correct.” “No, sir, I just want to wear the mask,” Mason replied. In other blunders, Trump commenced the Labor Day news conference by inappropriately pronouncing the word “projecting”. In one other instance, he retorts to reporters, saying, ”Friends of mine have said, sophisticated friends have said, you've got to be the most innocent guy ever to hold this office," and accuses protesters of "throwing soup".
Updated 13:39 IST, September 8th 2020