鳴り物入りの選挙集会が失敗　挽回迫られるトランプ氏

【ワシントンＡＦＰ＝時事】ドナルド・トランプ米大統領は、オクラホマ州タルサで20日に開いた選挙集会が失敗に終わったことを受け、挽回の必要性に迫られている。トランプ氏は集会で、国内で生じている新型コロナウイルス流行と人種問題のデモという2つの危機について、民意をくみ取れないリーダーとの印象を残した。（写真はタルサのBOKセンターで開かれた選挙集会で演説するドナルド・トランプ大統領）
　タルサの集会は、新型コロナウイルスのパンデミック（世界的な大流行）により中断されていた選挙活動の再開を盛大に記念する集会となるはずだった。だが集会会場には空席が目立った上、トランプ氏のパフォーマンスには、２０１６年の大統領選でヒラリー・クリントン氏に対し予想外の勝利を収めたエネルギーを取り戻そうとする疲れたショーマンのような雰囲気が出ていた。
　トランプ氏は１時間４３分の演説のうち１４分余りを、ウエストポイントにある陸軍士官学校での演説後にスロープを下りた際に足元がおぼつかなかった理由の釈明に費やした。
　タルサからホワイトハウスに戻ったトランプ氏は、ネクタイをほどき、不機嫌な様子でヘリコプターを降りた。その憂鬱（ゆううつ）な雰囲気には、１１月３日の選挙まで残り１３３日ながらも選挙活動で苦戦を強いられている現況がにじみ出ていた。世論調査では一貫して、民主党候補のジョー・バイデン氏がトランプ氏より優勢との結果が出ている。
　２２日朝のトランプ氏のツイッターへの投稿からは、前日のゴルフでも気分が良くならなかったことがうかがえる。同氏は「不正操作された２０２０年選挙：数百万枚の郵便投票用紙が外国などにより印刷される。現代史上最大のスキャンダルになる！」と書き込んだ。
　今年の大統領選では、新型ウイルス流行のため郵便投票の重要性が高まる見込みだが、トランプ氏はこれまで頻繁に、郵便投票は不正を誘発するという根拠のない主張を展開してきた。
　米政界では、トランプ陣営の選挙対策責任者であるブラッド・パースケール氏の解任を含む人事刷新の可能性をめぐる臆測が飛び交っているが、今のところそうした発表はない。
　５月の就任時に「ジャーナリストに決してうそをつかない」と約束していたケイリー・マケナニー大統領報道官は２２日、タルサの集会で空席が目立ったことにトランプ氏が怒っているとの報道を否定。「大統領は全く怒っていなかった」「大統領は非常に活気づいていた」と述べた。
【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2020/06/23-13:50）

US President Donald Trump is in desperate need of a political boost after a fiasco of a campaign rally in Tulsa left him looking like a leader detached from the multiple crises gripping the United States.
In addition to the poor attendance, Trump's performance at the Oklahoma rally on Saturday had the air of a tired showman seeking to recapture the energy that drove him to an upset victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Tie undone, Trump's demeanor was sullen when he exited his helicopter on his return to the White House from the Tulsa event, which had been billed as the president's triumphant return to the campaign trail after the coronavirus pandemic put things on hold.
His gloomy appearance summed up the reality of the situation -- the November 3 election is 133 days away and his campaign is struggling.
And if Trump's tweets on Monday morning are any indication, a golf outing on Sunday did nothing to improve his mood.
RIGGED 2020 ELECTION: MILLIONS OF MAIL-IN BALLOTS WILL BE PRINTED BY FOREIGN COUNTRIES, AND OTHERS. IT WILL BE THE SCANDAL OF OUR TIMES! he tweeted.
The tweet was Trump's latest salvo against mail-in voting, which is expected to take on added significance this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Trump has frequently claimed with no evidence that mail-in voting is particularly susceptible to fraud.
Poll after poll shows Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden with a comfortable lead over his Republican rival.
The billionaire real estate tycoon who crafted a stunning political upset in 2016 has shown his resilience on numerous occasions and cannot be counted out yet.
But confronted with twin crises -- the COVID-19 pandemic and nationwide protests for racial justice -- the 74-year-old president has appeared overmatched, unable, his critics say, to capture the pulse of the country.
The strong economy which Trump has touted endlessly is in a shambles, ravaged by COVID-19.
- 'One-term president' -
With the coronavirus death toll in the United States reaching 120,000, Trump defied the advice of health authorities to hold a rally in an indoor stadium.
In his Tulsa speech, Trump said he had asked his staff to slow the testing down to prevent discovery of more virus cases, a remark his campaign staffers tried to pass off later as just a joke.
He spent more than 14 minutes of his one hour and 43 minute speech explaining why he had haltingly descended a ramp following a speech at the West Point military academy.
Trump said he was wearing leather-bottomed shoes and was trying to avoid falling on my ass.
Trump did fling a few barbs during his Tulsa speech at Biden, accusing his November opponent of being a puppet for both China and the radical left.
But the president is still clearly searching for an angle of attack against a rival who is leading in the polls while making few campaign appearances.
As Trump struggles, his former National Security Advisor, John Bolton, is promoting a tell-all book that paints a damning portrait of the president.
I hope (history) will remember him as a one-term president who didn't plunge the country irretrievably into a downward spiral, Bolton said in an interview with ABC News.
He expressed fears about potential damage to the world's flagship democracy if Trump wins a second term.
The concern I have, speaking as a conservative Republican, is that once the election is over, if the president wins, the political constraint is gone, Bolton said.
Washington is rife with rumors of a potential shake-up in the Trump campaign with campaign manager Brad Parscale in the firing line. No changes have been announced for the moment.
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, who promised when she took the position in May that she would never lie to journalists, pushed back on Monday at reports Trump was angry about the empty seats at Tulsa rally.
The president was not angry at all, McEnany said on Fox & Friends. The president was quite energized.
I was with him after the rally, it was a huge success, she said. His speech got rave reviews.