Far from Washington for one evening, Donald Trump on Friday touted an "exceptional" America in the majestic setting of Mount Rushmore, without dwelling on the alarming figures of COVID - 19 in a worried country it is struggling to assemble .
Jérôme CARTILLIER
France Media Agency
Very criticized for his management of the pandemic, the American president offered himself, on the eve of the national holiday of July 4, an evening of fireworks and a speech with a very harsh tone in the field conquered.
The tempestuous billionaire spoke under the gaze of four of his distant predecessors, cut in granite, which he praised at length: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.
In front of a crowd chanting "Four more years", in which masks were rare, he posed, four months before the presidential election, in defender of the "integrity" of his country .
"We are going to tell the truth as it is, without apologizing: the United States of America is the most just and exceptional country having ever existed on Earth," he said. he throws.
In the midst of a debate on the symbols of the country's history, and while statues of Confederate generals were thrown to the ground by anti-racist demonstrators, he denounced "a campaign to erase our history, defame our heroes, suppress our values and indoctrinate our children ".
But "the Americans are strong and proud," he said.
Record resurgence
The billionaire, who leaves his vice-president Mike Pence on the front line in the face of the spectacular rebound of the epidemic, did not hide his enthusiasm for this event which thousands of people attended in a summer atmosphere , under a cloudless sky.
But he only briefly mentioned the resurgence of COVID cases - 19 in the south and west which "puts the whole country in danger", in the words of Anthony Fauci, director of the American Institute infectious diseases.
In bad shape in the polls, Donald Trump has been sticking to one message for several days: the coronavirus crisis is "managed", the American economy is starting again "stronger and faster" than expected and the year 2021 will be "historic".
However, in stark contrast to Europe, contamination records are broken daily in the United States.
Minutes before the arrival of Air Force One, the authoritative Johns Hopkins University announced that the United States had registered on Friday 57 683 new infections due to coronavirus in 24 hours.
Many states have had to pause the deconfinement, or even backtrack, hastily closing bars and beaches.
At the start of this long holiday weekend, former Democratic President Barack Obama called for a start. "Defeating this virus will require everyone's mobilization. Wear a mask. Wash your hands, "he tweeted. "And listen to the experts, not those who are trying to divide us. "
PHOTO ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Donald Trump supporters awaited his arrival along a highway on Friday in Keystone.
"No social distancing"
The White House tenant, who was accompanied by his wife Melania Trump, knew he could count on a warm welcome in South Dakota, a sparsely populated state that he won in 2016 with over 60 % voices.
And Republican Governor Kristi Noem had indicated in advance that she did not intend to spoil the party.
PHOTO ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS, AGENCY FRANCE-PRESSE
An activist and member of a tribe from the region wore an "America has never been big" cap during a demonstration against the evening organized at Mount Rushmore.
"We have told those who are worried that they can stay at home," she said. "For those who want to join us, we will distribute free masks, if they decide to wear one. But there will be no social distancing. "
Representatives of Sioux tribes demonstrated to protest against the organization of this evening in these Black Hills mountains - where the heads were carved from 1927 at 1941 - which they consider sacred.
Donald Trump has been talking to him about his fascination with Mount Rushmore for a long time. In 2017, he even joked that his face might be added one day . Beyond all political considerations, however, it is unlikely to happen.
"From time to time, individuals or organizations offer to add new busts [...], but this is not possible," said AFP spokesperson Dana Soehn. National Park.
"The rock that is around the faces [des présidents] does not allow additional sculpture", she explains, recalling also that the sculptor, Gutzon Borglum, wanted to represent the ideals of 150 first years of American history - birth, growth, development, preservation - and that his work was therefore completed.