This is just…wow:

“I’m a cheerleader for this country … I don’t want people to be frightened” — Trump tries to explain why he misled the public about how bad coronavirus is pic.twitter.com/xUBnoVpHSN

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 9, 2020

“We have to show leadership, and leadership is all about confidence. Confidence is all about confidence in our country.”

“I’m a cheerleader for this country. We want to show confidence. We don’t want to instill panic,” Trump added.

By saying that being honest with the American people would lead to panic, you are effectively admitting that you have no confidence in the American people and they in turn have no confidence in you. That you cannot stand up and be the person people need in a time of crisis, you can only find excuses for your lack of leadership.