Donald Trump berated Joe Biden for shaking hands with a man, then went maskless at a rally. (Picture: Getty)

Donald Trump slates Joe Biden for not social distancing - then goes maskless

by · Metro

Donald Trump berated Joe Biden for not social distancing, then appeared in public without a mask just hours later.

In a tweet sentThursday, the President spoke about how there was ‘no enthusiasm’ for the former vice president after shaking hands with someone’

‘Joe Hiden gets off his airplane, grabs and shakes a rather stunned man’s hand (like in the old days), then touches his (Joe’s) face and mask with the same hand,’ the tweet said. No crowd, no enthusiasm for Joe today. Law & Order!’

Trump has rolled out ‘Joe Hiden’ as his new nickname for his rival, a reference to 77 year-old Biden broadcasting from his Delaware basement for months in a bid to avoid coronavirus.

But later that night, the president ignored his own criticism and spoke to a crowd of supporters – many of whom were not socially distanced or wearing masks – from inside an aircraft hanger in Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

He went onto make fun of Biden’s ability to follow health and safety guidelines and called the presidential candidate weak for wearing a mask.

‘Did you ever see a man who likes a mask as much as him?’ Trump said. ‘It gives (Biden) a feeling of security.’

Donald Trump speaks to a crowd of mostly maskless supporters in Latrobe, Pennsylvania on Thursday. (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

Despite the slur, Trump acknowledged to the crowd that he is making speeches in the partially outdoor airplane hangars instead of arenas because of the pandemic. He said he could just get off the plane, give a speech and ‘get the hell out of here.’

Jonathan Reiner, professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University said that Trump doesn’t care about the health effects of not wearing a mask and only cares about his own personal image.

‘He didn’t like the way he looked and thought it made him look weak,’ Reiner said. ‘This is what happened when the president’s narcissism collided with the needs of the country. Narcissism won.’

The US has seen 6.15million coronavirus cases, and close to 187,000 deaths so far under Donald Trump’s presidency.

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