More than 55,000 Americans are dead, some 27 million are unemployed, and the headline out of Monday’s White House press briefing is a useless, attention-seeking gotcha question asked by Anthony Weiner’s former intern.

This is all President Trump’s fault.

Sorry, it just is.

We’re in the middle of a deadly pandemic that is literally destroying our economy, and for more than a month now Trump has been baited into wrestling in the mud with a pig. And in that kind of situation, only the pig can win. This is not a good look for Trump, it is not good for the well-being of the country, and something needs to change — hopefully before tonight’s briefing.

I know, I know… early on, during these first briefings, Trump acted the statesman, the normal president, the wartime leader. He tried. He really did. But the media were just not going to allow him to continue to present himself in that way. And that’s when the media’s badgering, heckling, and relentlessly repetitive gotcha questions began. That’s when the media colluded to knock him off his statesman game by getting under his skin. And it worked. The media are under Trump’s skin. And why not…

He’s only human, and I’m sure that like every decent person, he simply cannot believe the media are so evil and so sociopathic that even during a deadly pandemic they would continue to behave this way.

But they are behaving this way, they are that evil and sociopathic, and now Trump’s entered into a deeply destructive relationship with them. Night after night after night, these dysfunctional briefings continue. Night after night after night, the country’s invited by their parents into the room for some adult guidance, wisdom, and information, only to see it devolve into a bitter and toxic screaming match.

I’m sorry, I blame Trump.

Yes, the media are evil, no question. But if you let the rattlesnake into the house, whose fault is it if your kids get bit? So why does Trump keep letting the rattlesnake into the house?

People are dying, 27 million (and counting) lives have been shattered, and what this country needs now more than ever is to hear from our president, the task force, experts like Drs. Fauci and Birx, and then have some intelligent and probing questions asked by people who actually care about America and Americans.

As much as anyone I love to see Trump tangle with these media assholes, but this is different. This is not just another partisan food fight. We’re talking about a health and economic crisis no one alive today has ever seen before, and Trump keeps wrestling with the pigs at our expense.

I find this inexcusable on the president’s part.

Is it his pride that allows this dysfunction to continue?

Does he think he can somehow find a way to declare victory when he’s battling a group of corrupt hijackers whose only goal is to turn these briefings into the ugliest thing possible?

When the media’s only goal is to destroy these briefings, there’s no way Trump can win in that situation. No one could.

But I didn’t just come to bitch. I actually have a solution…

Because of the corrupt White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), Trump has no control over the White House briefing room. The WHCA decides who is allowed to ask questions. The WHCA decides where people will sit.

You want to defeat these assholes, Mr. President…?

Hold your briefings in the Rose Garden or in a venue where the WHCA has no jurisdiction. In that setting, you get to choose who’s invited, you get to choose the seating chart, and for the good of the country, you and your team can start taking questions from people who actually care about the fate of the country — our health and our economy.

If you have to fly the questioners in, fly them in. If you have to take questions via Skype or Zoom or email or carrier pigeon, take questions that way…

I don’t want questions only from Trump supporters… But please, please, please take advantage of the digital era so that you and your team can take questions from local reporters in hot zone cities, from people who represent truckers and small businesses and grocery store clerks and farmers…

For the good of the country, we need better questions than the ones we’re getting from this sociopathic gang of corrupt elites.

And if beating the media is important to Trump, what better way to defeat them than to EXCLUDE them?

I’m on record complaining about these briefings from the beginning. Now I no longer watch them. They’re too long, too useless, and aggravating. There’s just no point. And yes, of course it’s the fake news media’s fault, and my disgust and contempt for the media continues to reach new highs.

But I’ve also grown disgusted with Trump for allowing this to continue. Our economy is shattered, tens of thousands of Americans are dying, and the president of the United States continues to wrestle with pigs.

Shame on him.

Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.