John J. Pitney Jr.

Opinion contributor

President Donald Trump sent a couple of messages to America last week: You shouldn’t vote by mail, even though I do. And you might want to wear masks, even though I won’t.

Because crowded voting sites can spread COVID-19, some states are trying to expand mail-in balloting. At his Friday press briefing, Trump spat on the idea: “No, it shouldn’t be mailed in. You should vote at the booth.” The Republican National Committee, which answers to Trump, is taking legal action to stop the mail-in effort. And in Wisconsin on Monday, Republican legislators and conservative court majorities thwarted Democratic Gov. Tony Evers' attempts to postpone Tuesday's primary election and extend voting by mail. So people risked their health to vote in person.

As various news organizations have reminded us, Trump voted by mail in the 2018 midterm election and last month in the 2020 Florida primary. His defenders might claim that the intense pressure of the presidency forces him to vote from the White House. No, it doesn’t. During his tenure, he has found time for more than 200 rounds of golf. And he was in Palm Beach, his new official home, on a weekend when he could have personally cast a primary ballot at an early voting site.

Consistent only in breaking rules

Trump also passed along advice from the Centers for Disease Control that Americans should wear masks in public places. He added that he would disregard the recommendation. “I don’t know, somehow sitting in the Oval Office behind that beautiful Resolute Desk — the great Resolute Desk — I think wearing a face mask as I greet presidents, prime ministers, dictators, kings, queens, I don’t know. Somehow, I don’t see it for myself.”

For the rest of us, shopping for groceries is like clearing radioactive rubble from a rooftop in Chernobyl. We put on face coverings and rubber gloves, fearing that we might die if we go too often or stay too long. At least we can take comfort in knowing that our president will continue to display full facial nudity when he hangs out with dictators.

Bearing witness:Why I watch Trump's daily coronavirus briefings (and no, it's not because I'm a masochist)

In one way, Trump is consistent. Despite all the warnings about social distancing, he has made his underlings and political allies stand shoulder-to-shoulder behind him in White House photo ops. After signing the stimulus bill, he violated another guideline by handing out ceremonial pens with his ungloved hands. He does not care that these practices could have exposed other people to the coronavirus. They made for nice pictures.

It is all in character. Trump was born in privilege, which he takes for granted. He has always assumed that he could flout the rules and norms that apply to others, even when someone else has to pay.

The pattern was clear as early as 1968. Thanks to a podiatrist who rented from his wealthy father, Trump got a draft exemption for bone spurs, which never seemed to bother him before or since. Accordingly, another youth had to take his place in Vietnam

Throughout his public life, he has denounced “welfare.” In 2013, he tweeted: “One of Obama’s greatest failures will be his legacy of making millions completely dependent on government handouts, not work.” Trump himself has always depended on government handouts, gaining at least $885 million in tax breaks and various subsidies for his interests in New York City.

Hotline:Share your coronavirus story

Although he currently enjoys taxpayer-financed medical care, and has been able to get coronavirus tests, he lacks any sense of urgency about the health needs of ordinary Americans. He surprised officials of this own administration by refusing to reopen Obamacare enrollment to millions who just lost their coverage. In other words, let them eat COVID.

Not wasting the coronavirus crisis

Trump’s signature issue is undocumented immigration. Not willing to let a crisis go to waste, he has exercised his emergency powers to suspend legal protections for asylum seekers and children. His hypocrisy on this topic is stunning. Years ago, he used undocumented Polish laborers to demolish a building so he could build Trump Tower. More recently, he employed undocumented housekeepers and other workers at his golf resorts, abruptly firing them only when it became clear that he could no longer keep their status under wraps.

Think of England:Queen Elizabeth gives a coronavirus speech and the contrast with Trump is stunning

In Trump’s clubs, a velvet rope separates him and his friends from the crowds that want to get inside. It is un-American to draw a velvet rope across our country, with all the rights on one side and all the responsibilities on the other.

Trump likes to make a show of patriotism by fondling the American flag and mouthing slogans such as “Make America Great Again.” These gestures mean nothing. Real patriotism involves obeying the law, serving other Americans, and making some effort to share in their sacrifices. From his early life through his disastrous performance in the coronavirus crisis, Donald Trump has fallen fall short of this standard. The president is no patriot.

John J. Pitney Jr., a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, is a former Republican who worked for congressional Republicans and the Republican National Committee. His latest book is "Un-American: The Fake Patriotism of Donald J. Trump," coming April 28. Follow him on Twitter: @jpitney