Sunny Hostin tried three times to bait Mark Cuban into attacking President Donald Trump over his response to coronavirus, but he wasn’t biting.
Cuban made a remote appearance Tuesday on ABC’s “The View” to discuss the coronavirus pandemic, its impact on small businesses and the Trump administration’s response to that.
Hostin framed he first question around Trump, saying, “You know, in January though, experts were raising the alarm about the coronavirus to President Trump, and some say that his refusal to respond quickly, efficiently, appropriately enough cost lives, American lives. What are your thoughts about his leadership during this pandemic?” (RELATED: ‘That’s My Point’: Alan Dershowitz Gets Sunny Hostin To Help Him Argue Against Impeachment Witnesses)
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While Cuban readily admitted that he was not Trump’s biggest fan, he also said that he was willing to give some latitude to a man he believed was “doing the best he can.”
“You know, I’m not a fan of President Trump’s, but I’m not going to rip on him either because any senator could have stood up and said something and screamed loud,” Cuban explained. “Any congressperson could have. I mean, nobody did. I didn’t have high expectations from President Trump, but I’m not going to throw him under the bus.”
Cuban went on to criticize what he said was a “failure of leadership across the political spectrum,” saying that multiple people on multiple levels of government had either dropped the ball or failed to come forward with helpful information.
Hostin tried again: “Trump’s approval ratings matches his all-time high, 49%, the highest mark since he’s been in office. Are we underestimating how Americans are viewing his handling of this crisis?” (RELATED: Sunny Hostin Slams Bernie Sanders For Skipping Out On Selma: ‘He Seems To Get It Wrong Over And Over Again’)
“No. I mean, look. You know, he’s doing the best he can, and here’s what I’ll say, and I’m not a fan of his, but what’s real is real,” Cuban replied. “When you have imperfect information, you make imperfect decisions. We’re not in a ready, aim fire mode. That makes it tough. No matter what he did, it’s going to be wrong for some people.”
Cuban went on to praise Trump for deferring to experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci, who has been front and center for much of America’s response to coronavirus, saying that people were likely responding positively because the president was allowing experts to take the lead on this.
Hostin tried one more time to turn the attack on Trump, asking whether his attacks on New York Governor Andrew Cuomo were acceptable.
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“Mark, you know, many people are calling Governor Cuomo ‘President Cuomo’ at this point for the way he’s leading New York state during this pandemic, but President Trump berated him saying, he needs to do more … Is this how President Trump should be spending his time? Criticizing the governor of one of the hardest hit states?” Hostin asked.
Cuban agreed that the personal attacks were not necessary, but pivoted to say that he felt the Trump administration’s actions should be the metric by which he was judged.
“There’s no good reason just to rip on, you know, I’m ripping on politicians generically, but the decisions that have been made particularly from the president, he is who he is. I’m not just going to stand around and tear him apart,” Cuban concluded. “President Trump can tweet about whatever he wants. I’m looking to see people doing work, and are we trying to solve things coming out of the government? Yes, we are. That’s what I focus on … A lot of great people are doing great things, including Governor Cuomo, and I’d rather focus on what’s getting done than what’s not getting done.”