Stephen Colbert blames Trump for culture war over masks

Stephen Colbert says President Trump’s failure to endorse masks has increased health risks

President Donald Trump isn’t responsible for the novel coronavirus pandemic but shares the blame for how it continues to spread. That’s the position of Stephen Colbert and his monologue on Thursday’s Late Show further explained why.

Colbert has condemned the president for failing to grasp the severity of COVID-19, failing to get an adequate testing system in place, and failing to follow the advice of medical experts. The result is America trailing behind other nations in infection rates and deaths.

To help mitigate the spread of COVID-19, health experts continue to advise wearing a mask or cloth face covering when in public. But somewhere along the line, this became a political issue as some people refused to wear a mask if mandated by the government. It has lead to protests, confrontations, and heated debate.

President Trump has not done anything to stop what Stephen Colbert calls a culture war. The president has either refused to wear a mask in public or refused to let himself be photographed wearing one. Colbert says this has encouraged President Trump to also not wear masks and this is increasing the health risk for everyone.

Stephen Colbert argues that the anti-mask movement was started by President Trump

There is no denying the dedication and loyalty of President Donald Trump’s base. His supporters follow every word he says and relentlessly defend his words and actions. But instead of a political position, they are now following President Trump’s lead on a matter of public health.

Over the past week, a number of clips have gone viral from town meetings across the country where citizens are speaking out against social distancing and wearing a mask. Somehow it has become patriotic not to wear a mask even though research shows it will help the country recover. Colbert says this all started in the White House where President Trump deemed masks a “double-edged sword” just like testing for COVID-19.

Colbert ridicules and outright insults those who have taken things to the extreme. In particular, the “Freedom to Breathe Agency” gets the Late Show host’s attention for spreading cards meant to look like an official government-issued document exempting the holder from wearing a mask.

Lately, Colbert has kept his attention on President Trump and the administration. Even the president’s rallies, which featured over 6,000 people gathering indoors, led Colbert to mock the president more than those who attended. But he can’t ignore going after supporters and those pushing back against wearing a mask in public.

If President Trump wants the pandemic to go away to help the economy and his re-election bid, supporting masks would go a long way to achieve that goal. Yet even for these self-serving reasons, he hasn’t and Colbert just can’t understand why.

What did you think of Stephen Colbert’s monologue? Share your thoughts in the comment section. Keep checking Last Night On for more from The Late Show and the rest of late night television.