'Trump froze like a deer in headlights': New Biden ads skewer Trump's halting pandemic response

Donald Trump, by dint of his unflagging ineptitude and pervasive presence on the national stage, has left the Biden campaign with an embarrassment of riches for material to use in attack ads.

Two released by the campaign this week work in tandem, one reminding Americans just how devastating this pandemic has been under Trump's leadership while the other reveals a man living in his own world, convinced of his competence and incapable of comprehending the reality most Americans are living.

"When coronavirus came, Trump froze like a deer in the headlights," the first ad opens, charging that Trump was "paralyzed" by his fear of dooming the stock market and killing his trade deal with China.

"So he failed to act, and the virus got out of control, and shut down the nation, and crushed the economy," the ad continues, citing the nearly 100,000 American deaths and 38 million unemployment claims.

"Too scared to act, too panicked to tell the truth, too weak to lead," the ad concludes. "A president who can't handle the crisis is no president at all."

The next ad uses newly released research showing that if Trump had enacted social distancing measures even one week sooner, he could have saved 36,000 American lives. But Trump is shown playing up how "early" his administration acted and, given the chance to reflect on his response several months into the crisis, Trump says he would have done "nothing" differently. Because Trump isn’t living in a world where saving lives is paramount.