Trump has ‘gone awol’ as president amid coronavirus pandemic, says ex-CIA director

Leon Panetta becomes latest prominent public figure to accuse Trump of effectively surrendering to the virus and abandoning Americans to their fate

Donald Trump has “essentially gone awol from the job of leadership that he should be providing a country in trouble” during the coronavirus pandemic, a former defence secretary and CIA director said on Wednesday.

Related: US setting new coronavirus case records as 'Russian bounty' row continues - live updates

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Larry Elder

In a newspaper piece about a White House in turmoil, a prominent paper described an atmosphere of beleaguered aides confused by their unscripted boss, a man who needed a "rudder on what many believed was a loose and listing ship." The Washington Post, in 1997, wrote this about President Bill Clinton and the state of his presidency in mid-1994.

Panetta: Trump’s ‘Dangerous Games’ Weaken Presidency

Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said President Donald Trump's "dangerous games" - like accusing former President Barack Obama of wiretapping his Trump Tower telephones during the campaign - "weakens the office of the presidency." "No such wiretap took place," Panetta, who also served as CIA director under Obama, told Wolf Blitzer on CNN's "The Situation Room."

PHOTO: Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta is interviewed by Jake Tapper on “This Week.”

Former CIA director and defense secretary Leon Panetta blasted Donald Trump over foreign policy tonight, calling a vote for him "deadly serious," but a faction of delegates tried to shout him down throughout his remarks. Delegates from Oregon initially erupted, briefly interrupting his remarks by chanting "No More War!" Other groups around the arena began chanting "Hillary!" More chants of "Love Not War!" and "No More Drones!" broke out before being swallowed by "USA!" from most of the arena.