https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/coronavirus-crowds-dumb-not-brave.html
"After weeks insisting that COVID-19 was no worse than the flu and that the economy was fine, Trump himself has finally recommended that people not gather in groups larger than 10 people, and admitted that a recession is likely in the offing. These officials are hoping that Americans can see beyond their frontiersman fetish—where Saturday night outings have become the hedonic equivalent of defending the homestead—and commit to the actual greater good. Real sacrifices will be required in the coming weeks. Serious sacrifices—not just having to forgo a good time. Many Americans are prepared to make them and to act not for themselves but for others, at considerable cost and inconvenience to themselves. It won’t be easy. It will require that entire communities work together in fellowship by staying physically apart. We can hope that the defiant remainders will rise to the occasion, however belatedly. But if that doesn’t work, then the American holdouts need to take a minute to ponder who the enemy is they’re “resisting.” The virus isn’t sentient. It isn’t watching the bar-going hordes and thinking, Wow, I really misjudged these brave Americans; I’m not sure I’m up to this. But let’s say, for the sake of argument, that this is a war. (The Navy’s COVID-19 guidelines are illustrated by a submarine firing a torpedo at a giant coronavirus.) What the virus wants, to the extent that you can even project desire onto it, is to invade your body and then use it to invade your friends’ bodies too. You want to show the virus who’s boss? Want to do your part for the war effort and starve the invader into submission? Deny it the use of your body. Stay home."
Wednesday, March 18, 2020
Former Rep. Duncan Hunter was sentenced to 11 months in prison for violating campaign laws
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/17/21183861/duncan-hunter-sentenced-prison-campaign-laws
"The Republican won’t have to turn himself into authorities until late May because of the coronavirus pandemic."
"The Republican won’t have to turn himself into authorities until late May because of the coronavirus pandemic."
How To Get More Ventilators And What To Do If We Can’t
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coronavirus-ventilators-supply-manufacture_n_5e6dc4f7c5b6747ef11e8134
"The consequences of a shortage would be dire. Doctors would have to make harrowing decisions about who gets the ventilators and who doesn’t, decisions that doctors in coronavirus-ravaged China, Iran and Italy say they are making already."
"The consequences of a shortage would be dire. Doctors would have to make harrowing decisions about who gets the ventilators and who doesn’t, decisions that doctors in coronavirus-ravaged China, Iran and Italy say they are making already."
How To Support People In Health Care Working During Coronavirus
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-to-support-health-care-workers-coronavirus_l_5e6f840ac5b6747ef121c749
"Natasha Bhuyan, a practicing family physician in Phoenix, said you can help by heeding expert and government-issued advice. This includes washing your hands and practicing social distancing. “And don’t stockpile medical masks or hand sanitizer in mass amounts so front-line health care providers and patients in need are able to access them,” she said." People who work in medicine are being stretched beyond the limit in this COVID-19 outbreak. Take care of them."
"Natasha Bhuyan, a practicing family physician in Phoenix, said you can help by heeding expert and government-issued advice. This includes washing your hands and practicing social distancing. “And don’t stockpile medical masks or hand sanitizer in mass amounts so front-line health care providers and patients in need are able to access them,” she said." People who work in medicine are being stretched beyond the limit in this COVID-19 outbreak. Take care of them."
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Trump’s damage is already done
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/17/trumps-damage-is-already-done/
"President Trump’s delay in preparing for the coronavirus might be the costliest presidential bungle in history, one that will likely increase the number of deaths and damage the long-term well-being of Americans. (The pathetic attempt to rewrite history to keep the Trumpian myth intact will not protect his reputation nor that of his enablers, including those who voted for acquittal in his Senate impeachment trial.) He has also poisoned the well of public opinion."
"President Trump’s delay in preparing for the coronavirus might be the costliest presidential bungle in history, one that will likely increase the number of deaths and damage the long-term well-being of Americans. (The pathetic attempt to rewrite history to keep the Trumpian myth intact will not protect his reputation nor that of his enablers, including those who voted for acquittal in his Senate impeachment trial.) He has also poisoned the well of public opinion."
The conservative movement is a public health hazard
https://theweek.com/articles/902018/conservative-movement-public-health-hazard
"It has been clear since 1980 that under Republican rule, the federal government decays. But under Trump, it has gotten full-blown administrative gangrene. Compared to what is needed to combat the crisis, Trump has done basically nothing. Meanwhile, he and his allies in conservative media have pushed an avalanche of misinformation that will only accelerate the spread of the disease. This is what the conservative movement has become: a gigantic public health hazard for America and the world. There are two main ways in which conservatives have dissolved the bones of American government. The first is ideological. For decades, Republicans have been pushing a libertarian economic vision that can be summarized as "Government Bad." By this view, the government is a largely-pointless hindrance to private enterprise, and basically all regulations and social welfare programs should be done away with. (Prisons and the military can stay, of course.) But there are many, many things, like public health emergencies, in which private businesses simply cannot handle things on their own. Nothing but the federal government can carry out the rapid and extensive actions needed to coordinate a response to a galloping nationwide viral pandemic, and the federal government is by far best able to finance one. As The New Republic's Alex Pareene writes, the right-wing extremists in the Trump administration have reacted with a sort of slack-jawed disbelief at the private sector completely failing to rise to the coronavirus challenge. Second and more importantly, there is the conservative propaganda machine. The American right-wing media is without question the most unhinged, hysterical, irresponsible, and conspiracy-addled major press complex in the world. The right-wing media in the U.K. and Australia come close (probably because of shared language and ownership), but nobody beats Fox News in their combination of wide reach and utterly shameless propaganda."
"It has been clear since 1980 that under Republican rule, the federal government decays. But under Trump, it has gotten full-blown administrative gangrene. Compared to what is needed to combat the crisis, Trump has done basically nothing. Meanwhile, he and his allies in conservative media have pushed an avalanche of misinformation that will only accelerate the spread of the disease. This is what the conservative movement has become: a gigantic public health hazard for America and the world. There are two main ways in which conservatives have dissolved the bones of American government. The first is ideological. For decades, Republicans have been pushing a libertarian economic vision that can be summarized as "Government Bad." By this view, the government is a largely-pointless hindrance to private enterprise, and basically all regulations and social welfare programs should be done away with. (Prisons and the military can stay, of course.) But there are many, many things, like public health emergencies, in which private businesses simply cannot handle things on their own. Nothing but the federal government can carry out the rapid and extensive actions needed to coordinate a response to a galloping nationwide viral pandemic, and the federal government is by far best able to finance one. As The New Republic's Alex Pareene writes, the right-wing extremists in the Trump administration have reacted with a sort of slack-jawed disbelief at the private sector completely failing to rise to the coronavirus challenge. Second and more importantly, there is the conservative propaganda machine. The American right-wing media is without question the most unhinged, hysterical, irresponsible, and conspiracy-addled major press complex in the world. The right-wing media in the U.K. and Australia come close (probably because of shared language and ownership), but nobody beats Fox News in their combination of wide reach and utterly shameless propaganda."
US hospitals are struggling to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/17/21183263/coronavirus-us-hospitals-elective-surgeries-icu-masks
"The coronavirus surge is coming, America’s hospitals are struggling to prepare, and the eventual demand for intensive care unit beds for Covid-19 cases could far exceed what US hospitals will be able to provide. Researchers at the Imperial College London wrote in a devastating new analysis that even stringent mitigation measures of case isolation, home quarantine, and social distancing “would still result in an 8-fold higher peak demand on critical care beds over and above the available surge capacity in ... the US.” America’s hospitals do not appear ready. Tom Frieden, former CDC director under President Barack Obama, told me that in “any place there is community transmission,” hospitals should cancel elective surgeries so they can make more beds available to Covid-19 patients. Surgeon General Jerome Adams has made a similar plea."
"The coronavirus surge is coming, America’s hospitals are struggling to prepare, and the eventual demand for intensive care unit beds for Covid-19 cases could far exceed what US hospitals will be able to provide. Researchers at the Imperial College London wrote in a devastating new analysis that even stringent mitigation measures of case isolation, home quarantine, and social distancing “would still result in an 8-fold higher peak demand on critical care beds over and above the available surge capacity in ... the US.” America’s hospitals do not appear ready. Tom Frieden, former CDC director under President Barack Obama, told me that in “any place there is community transmission,” hospitals should cancel elective surgeries so they can make more beds available to Covid-19 patients. Surgeon General Jerome Adams has made a similar plea."
Team Trump received pandemic warning - in January 2017
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/team-trump-received-pandemic-warning-january-2017-n1161811
"Trump recently said that one can "never really think" something like this is "going to happen." Evidently, his team was warned that something extremely similar to this might very well happen, but the Republican's operation didn't much care."
"Trump recently said that one can "never really think" something like this is "going to happen." Evidently, his team was warned that something extremely similar to this might very well happen, but the Republican's operation didn't much care."
Sunday, March 15, 2020
CDC Suggests Ban On Groups Of 50 People Or More As U.S. Moves Closer To Shutdown
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coronavirus-national-shutdown_n_5e6eb670c5b6bd8156f9f468
"Restaurants, bars and schools have been shuttered, and the top infectious diseases expert said he’d like to see a 14-day national shutdown imposed."
"Restaurants, bars and schools have been shuttered, and the top infectious diseases expert said he’d like to see a 14-day national shutdown imposed."
Rupert Murdoch could save lives by forcing Fox News to tell the truth about coronavirus — right now
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/rupert-murdoch-could-save-lives-by-forcing-fox-news-to-tell-the-truth-about-coronavirus--right-now/2020/03/11/72059f4c-63a7-11ea-acca-80c22bbee96f_story.html
"The insidious feedback loop between President Trump and Fox News is no secret. When Trump says “jump,” the network leaps into action. And what the president hears on Fox News often dictates his own pronouncements and policies — which, in turn, are glowingly represented in Fox News’s coverage and commentary. That’s never been anything short of dangerous, since the effect has been to create a de facto state-run media monster more devoted to maintaining power than shedding light on the truth. But now the mind-meld of Fox News and Trump is potentially lethal as Trump plays down the seriousness of the coronavirus and, hearing nothing but applause from his favorite information source for doing so, sees little reason to change. There’s one person who could transform all that in an instant: Fox founder Rupert Murdoch, the Australian-born media mogul who, at 89, still exerts his influence on the leading cable network — and thus on the president himself."
"The insidious feedback loop between President Trump and Fox News is no secret. When Trump says “jump,” the network leaps into action. And what the president hears on Fox News often dictates his own pronouncements and policies — which, in turn, are glowingly represented in Fox News’s coverage and commentary. That’s never been anything short of dangerous, since the effect has been to create a de facto state-run media monster more devoted to maintaining power than shedding light on the truth. But now the mind-meld of Fox News and Trump is potentially lethal as Trump plays down the seriousness of the coronavirus and, hearing nothing but applause from his favorite information source for doing so, sees little reason to change. There’s one person who could transform all that in an instant: Fox founder Rupert Murdoch, the Australian-born media mogul who, at 89, still exerts his influence on the leading cable network — and thus on the president himself."
Top U.S. Health Official: Americans Should ‘Hunker Down Significantly More’
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/anthony-fauci-coronavirus-shutdown_n_5e6e26e8c5b6bd8156f936bb
"Anthony Fauci, one of the top U.S. health officials leading the country’s response to the coronavirus, urged Americans on Sunday to “hunker down significantly more” as the virus continues to spread across the country."
"Anthony Fauci, one of the top U.S. health officials leading the country’s response to the coronavirus, urged Americans on Sunday to “hunker down significantly more” as the virus continues to spread across the country."
Lying, Tweeting And Wishing A Pandemic Away Doesn’t Work, It Turns Out
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-pandemic-response_n_5e6d412ec5b6747ef11e4072
"What happens when the president of the United States tries to lie, wish and tweet a pandemic away? As it turns out, it puts a government response four to six weeks behind schedule, possibly resulting in thousands — or even tens or hundreds of thousands — more Americans getting seriously ill and dying."
"What happens when the president of the United States tries to lie, wish and tweet a pandemic away? As it turns out, it puts a government response four to six weeks behind schedule, possibly resulting in thousands — or even tens or hundreds of thousands — more Americans getting seriously ill and dying."
Saturday, March 14, 2020
Fox News During the Coronavirus Pandemic Is Awful Even by Fox News Standards
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/fox-news-is-denying-coronavirus-and-risking-viewers-lives.html
"Ever since Fox News launched in 1996, the network has labored to construct its own closed epistemic system, underpinned by a variety of questionable “facts” and baseline assumptions that validate right-wing viewpoints while demonizing liberal values. The point is to prop up right-wing politicians by training its viewers to hate, fear, and distrust anyone who leans even the slightest bit left. Critical to the success of this initiative has been the discrediting of traditional authorities, such as mainstream journalists and academic scholars, that traditionally take a more liberal view on the world. Since Trump became president, this reflexive anti-intellectualism has redoubled as the network has engaged in an all-out campaign to support and bolster Trump by discrediting his many enemies. Who are Trump’s enemies? Anyone who contradicts, criticizes, or disagrees with him, for one thing; anyone who insists on citing objective, observable facts to challenge the president’s narcissistic, narrative-driven worldview. Seen through that lens, the network’s subpar coverage of the coronavirus is just another example of Fox doing what it does best: carrying water for a dangerously unqualified president by encouraging their viewers to believe that Trump’s personal grievances are and should be their own. Aggravating in the best of times, this rhetorical strategy is downright unforgivable now, when lives are in the immediate balance and the difference between accurate and inaccurate information could literally mean the difference between saving those lives or losing them."
"Ever since Fox News launched in 1996, the network has labored to construct its own closed epistemic system, underpinned by a variety of questionable “facts” and baseline assumptions that validate right-wing viewpoints while demonizing liberal values. The point is to prop up right-wing politicians by training its viewers to hate, fear, and distrust anyone who leans even the slightest bit left. Critical to the success of this initiative has been the discrediting of traditional authorities, such as mainstream journalists and academic scholars, that traditionally take a more liberal view on the world. Since Trump became president, this reflexive anti-intellectualism has redoubled as the network has engaged in an all-out campaign to support and bolster Trump by discrediting his many enemies. Who are Trump’s enemies? Anyone who contradicts, criticizes, or disagrees with him, for one thing; anyone who insists on citing objective, observable facts to challenge the president’s narcissistic, narrative-driven worldview. Seen through that lens, the network’s subpar coverage of the coronavirus is just another example of Fox doing what it does best: carrying water for a dangerously unqualified president by encouraging their viewers to believe that Trump’s personal grievances are and should be their own. Aggravating in the best of times, this rhetorical strategy is downright unforgivable now, when lives are in the immediate balance and the difference between accurate and inaccurate information could literally mean the difference between saving those lives or losing them."
Watch Katie Porter Relentlessly Grill CDC Chief Into Saying ‘Yes’ to Free COVID-19 Tests
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/watch-katie-porter-grill-cdc-director-coronavirus-966572/
"Using a whiteboard and a deep breadth of knowledge regarding the costs of testing for the coronavirus, Representative Katie Porter peppered Trump administration officials into submission, finally causing them to cry uncle and commit to free testing for Americans “regardless of insurance"."
"Using a whiteboard and a deep breadth of knowledge regarding the costs of testing for the coronavirus, Representative Katie Porter peppered Trump administration officials into submission, finally causing them to cry uncle and commit to free testing for Americans “regardless of insurance"."
Fox News hosts and others scoffed at COVID-19 warnings, putting their own audience in danger
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/3/12/1926909/-Fox-News-hosts-and-others-scoffed-at-COVID-19-warnings-putting-their-own-audience-in-danger
"It will unfortunately not be up to us to enforce consequences for the widespread disinformation campaign that has been peddled to the American public by Fox News, richly-paid and now wealthy Fox News hosts, and the wide, greasy underbelly of the conservative conspiracy movement. That is on their own conservative audiences. They will have to realize who has lied to them and who has not, and assign blame, and get angry, and seek punishments. In the meantime, social distancing may mean avoiding not just crowds, but Fox News viewers. If that identifiable segment of the population is not taking the threat of the virus seriously even now, due to the blustering of wealthy, pompous hosts who don't give a particular damn which of their own audience members are put at risk by their false information, "conservative" becomes a disease vector. That is not an exaggeration. You know it, and I know it."
"It will unfortunately not be up to us to enforce consequences for the widespread disinformation campaign that has been peddled to the American public by Fox News, richly-paid and now wealthy Fox News hosts, and the wide, greasy underbelly of the conservative conspiracy movement. That is on their own conservative audiences. They will have to realize who has lied to them and who has not, and assign blame, and get angry, and seek punishments. In the meantime, social distancing may mean avoiding not just crowds, but Fox News viewers. If that identifiable segment of the population is not taking the threat of the virus seriously even now, due to the blustering of wealthy, pompous hosts who don't give a particular damn which of their own audience members are put at risk by their false information, "conservative" becomes a disease vector. That is not an exaggeration. You know it, and I know it."
Who could have predicted Trump would be such a bad crisis manager? Everyone, actually.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/12/who-could-have-predicted-trump-would-be-such-bad-crisis-manager-everyone-actually/
"Who could have predicted that Trump would be such an incompetent crisis manager? Pretty much everyone, actually. Yet nearly 63 million Americans voted for him anyway — and the Republican-controlled Senate refused to convict and remove him in January for his impeachable conduct. The entire country is now paying for those colossally irresponsible decisions as we face the worst crisis since 9/11 under the bungling leadership of the worst president in modern times."
"Who could have predicted that Trump would be such an incompetent crisis manager? Pretty much everyone, actually. Yet nearly 63 million Americans voted for him anyway — and the Republican-controlled Senate refused to convict and remove him in January for his impeachable conduct. The entire country is now paying for those colossally irresponsible decisions as we face the worst crisis since 9/11 under the bungling leadership of the worst president in modern times."
America is paying the price for Trump’s arrogance — again
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trumps-principle-contribution-to-combating-the-coronavirus-chaos-and-confusion/2020/03/13/3b2de1f6-64aa-11ea-b3fc-7841686c5c57_story.html
"It takes arrogance and ignorance in equal measure to mislead yourself into thinking that everything can be spun, and that governing is nothing more than dealmaking. Simply stated: Donald Trump may (possibly) know the development business, but he doesn’t know diddly-squat about how to govern. The country is paying the price."
"It takes arrogance and ignorance in equal measure to mislead yourself into thinking that everything can be spun, and that governing is nothing more than dealmaking. Simply stated: Donald Trump may (possibly) know the development business, but he doesn’t know diddly-squat about how to govern. The country is paying the price."
America Is Acting Like a Failed State
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/america-isnt-failing-its-pandemic-testwashington-is/608026/
"America has not yet failed, but its government has—and, along with it, a certain vision of conservative governance. For decades, the Republican Party has committed itself to destroying state capacity, disparaging science, punishing expertise, and masquerading as populist while enriching narrow interests. It has all led to this: an undetected pandemic spreading, likely exponentially, as the president and his representatives mock the disease and oversee a state apparatus too incompetent to test for it."
"America has not yet failed, but its government has—and, along with it, a certain vision of conservative governance. For decades, the Republican Party has committed itself to destroying state capacity, disparaging science, punishing expertise, and masquerading as populist while enriching narrow interests. It has all led to this: an undetected pandemic spreading, likely exponentially, as the president and his representatives mock the disease and oversee a state apparatus too incompetent to test for it."
Please, Listen to Experts About the Coronavirus. Then Step Up.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/11/opinion/coronavirus-expert-advice.html
"On Tuesday, a Harvard epidemiologist, Marc Lipsitch, shared his recent research into the coronavirus epidemics in Wuhan and Guangzhou, China, comparing their I.C.U. and hospital bed use with the capacity here in the United States. His conclusion was blunt: “We need to stop feeling sheepish about it and just realize that some places (Italy, Iran) are in crisis, and some are very likely in the days before crisis, a crisis that will be less bad if we slow down the virus. #flattenthecurve to reduce peak demand on health care.” Trevor Bedford, a researcher at Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, has been posting findings of genome sequencing of the virus to estimate spread. His research suggests an outbreak in the Seattle area that’s still not reflective of testing. Like other experts, Dr. Bedford offers links to public health officials with information about the effectiveness of social distancing, like Caitlin Rivers, an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security studying outbreak science and epidemiology. Caitlin Rivers, PhD Community interventions like event closures have an important role in limiting covid transmission, but individual behavior changes are even more important. 1/ Caitlin Rivers, PhD Community interventions are temporary and socially and economically costly. Individual actions are humble but powerful and permanent. 2/ Unlike government officials offering vague advice, many experts seem clear that difficult measures must be put in place. In a 35-tweet thread on Monday, Tom Inglesby, director of the Center for Health Security of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, laid out the case for social distancing in American cities. At a basic level, social distancing means keeping sick people home and out of contact with healthy as well as vulnerable people. It also means that healthy people distance themselves by avoiding crowded or public places, canceling plans and not traveling."
"On Tuesday, a Harvard epidemiologist, Marc Lipsitch, shared his recent research into the coronavirus epidemics in Wuhan and Guangzhou, China, comparing their I.C.U. and hospital bed use with the capacity here in the United States. His conclusion was blunt: “We need to stop feeling sheepish about it and just realize that some places (Italy, Iran) are in crisis, and some are very likely in the days before crisis, a crisis that will be less bad if we slow down the virus. #flattenthecurve to reduce peak demand on health care.” Trevor Bedford, a researcher at Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, has been posting findings of genome sequencing of the virus to estimate spread. His research suggests an outbreak in the Seattle area that’s still not reflective of testing. Like other experts, Dr. Bedford offers links to public health officials with information about the effectiveness of social distancing, like Caitlin Rivers, an assistant professor at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security studying outbreak science and epidemiology. Caitlin Rivers, PhD Community interventions like event closures have an important role in limiting covid transmission, but individual behavior changes are even more important. 1/ Caitlin Rivers, PhD Community interventions are temporary and socially and economically costly. Individual actions are humble but powerful and permanent. 2/ Unlike government officials offering vague advice, many experts seem clear that difficult measures must be put in place. In a 35-tweet thread on Monday, Tom Inglesby, director of the Center for Health Security of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, laid out the case for social distancing in American cities. At a basic level, social distancing means keeping sick people home and out of contact with healthy as well as vulnerable people. It also means that healthy people distance themselves by avoiding crowded or public places, canceling plans and not traveling."
12 Steps to Tackle the Coronavirus
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/11/opinion/coronavirus-united-states.html
"At least Emperor Nero supposedly only fiddled while Rome burned; he didn’t tell the Romans that the fire was no big deal. President Trump squandered two precious months trying to downplay the new coronavirus while attempting to talk up the stock market. We still have no idea how many Americans are infected, because the administration bungled diagnostics. As of a few days ago, South Korea had conducted up to 700 times more tests per capita than the United States. Trump’s passivity will cost lives, but we can still make preparations before hospitals risk becoming overwhelmed by a pandemic that is both more contagious than the seasonal flu and apparently many times more lethal. Dr. Tom Frieden, a former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warns that in a plausible worst-case scenario, this virus could kill more than one million Americans. After speaking to epidemiologists and public health specialists, I have a list of a dozen practical steps that the president and other officials should take immediately, while there is time. 1. Invest in a huge rollout of free testing so that we know who is sick. The University of Washington set up a drive-through system so that certain people can be tested without contaminating a clinic; South Korea did the same. We urgently need “rapid tests” — offering results in minutes — and before long we will also desperately need tests to determine who has had the virus and now has immunity. 2. Cancel large gatherings in parts of the country where community transmission is occurring, as Gov. Jay Inslee has done in Washington State. Employers should encourage people to work from home where possible. Even with social distancing, more than one-third of Americans may eventually be infected (a worst case is that 70 percent become infected, as Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany has cautioned for her country). But lives will be saved by flattening the curve so that infections grow more slowly."
"At least Emperor Nero supposedly only fiddled while Rome burned; he didn’t tell the Romans that the fire was no big deal. President Trump squandered two precious months trying to downplay the new coronavirus while attempting to talk up the stock market. We still have no idea how many Americans are infected, because the administration bungled diagnostics. As of a few days ago, South Korea had conducted up to 700 times more tests per capita than the United States. Trump’s passivity will cost lives, but we can still make preparations before hospitals risk becoming overwhelmed by a pandemic that is both more contagious than the seasonal flu and apparently many times more lethal. Dr. Tom Frieden, a former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warns that in a plausible worst-case scenario, this virus could kill more than one million Americans. After speaking to epidemiologists and public health specialists, I have a list of a dozen practical steps that the president and other officials should take immediately, while there is time. 1. Invest in a huge rollout of free testing so that we know who is sick. The University of Washington set up a drive-through system so that certain people can be tested without contaminating a clinic; South Korea did the same. We urgently need “rapid tests” — offering results in minutes — and before long we will also desperately need tests to determine who has had the virus and now has immunity. 2. Cancel large gatherings in parts of the country where community transmission is occurring, as Gov. Jay Inslee has done in Washington State. Employers should encourage people to work from home where possible. Even with social distancing, more than one-third of Americans may eventually be infected (a worst case is that 70 percent become infected, as Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany has cautioned for her country). But lives will be saved by flattening the curve so that infections grow more slowly."
A President Unequal to the Coronavirus Moment
https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-trumps-washington/a-president-unequal-to-the-moment
"Trump has spent years devaluing and diminishing facts, experts, institutions, and science—the very things upon which we must rely in a crisis—and his default setting during the coronavirus outbreak has been to deny, delay, deflect, and diminish. His speech on Wednesday night was a disappointment but not a surprise. He told us what we already knew: America is in big trouble."
"Trump has spent years devaluing and diminishing facts, experts, institutions, and science—the very things upon which we must rely in a crisis—and his default setting during the coronavirus outbreak has been to deny, delay, deflect, and diminish. His speech on Wednesday night was a disappointment but not a surprise. He told us what we already knew: America is in big trouble."
Trump Is Failing to Prepare Americans for a Disturbing New Reality
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/trump-doesnt-grasp-what-americans-are-going-through/607870/
"Trump’s efforts to minimize the disease look delusional against everything we know about it. The United States is just entering the mitigation stage of this crisis, during which cities and states will severely curb movement and social interactions to slow the spread of the disease and relieve burdens on our health-care system. For weeks to come, Americans will become accustomed to this jarring sense that time and basic social norms are suspended. After falsely saying the coronavirus is essentially contained, then not seeming to show much interest until the stock market took notice, Trump has shown no empathy for what the nation is now suffering. By all evidence, he is deeply concerned with how the pandemic will make him look. But as Craig Fugate, the former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, used to tell his teams, the best way to get good press is to do a good job. Americans need to brace for impact. Trump’s standard tactics—blaming immigrants and outsiders, promising fantastical walls, wearing red hats with slogans—are powerless against a global pandemic. While the coronavirus is by far the most dangerous crisis that the United States has faced since Trump took office, he has not participated in its resolution in any meaningful way. But a president isn’t allowed to be irrelevant at a moment of national crisis. Or, to put it another way, an irrelevant president is a harmful one. Last night Trump felt obliged to intervene more strongly—just not with the kind of information and leadership that will prepare Americans for a disturbing new reality."
"Trump’s efforts to minimize the disease look delusional against everything we know about it. The United States is just entering the mitigation stage of this crisis, during which cities and states will severely curb movement and social interactions to slow the spread of the disease and relieve burdens on our health-care system. For weeks to come, Americans will become accustomed to this jarring sense that time and basic social norms are suspended. After falsely saying the coronavirus is essentially contained, then not seeming to show much interest until the stock market took notice, Trump has shown no empathy for what the nation is now suffering. By all evidence, he is deeply concerned with how the pandemic will make him look. But as Craig Fugate, the former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, used to tell his teams, the best way to get good press is to do a good job. Americans need to brace for impact. Trump’s standard tactics—blaming immigrants and outsiders, promising fantastical walls, wearing red hats with slogans—are powerless against a global pandemic. While the coronavirus is by far the most dangerous crisis that the United States has faced since Trump took office, he has not participated in its resolution in any meaningful way. But a president isn’t allowed to be irrelevant at a moment of national crisis. Or, to put it another way, an irrelevant president is a harmful one. Last night Trump felt obliged to intervene more strongly—just not with the kind of information and leadership that will prepare Americans for a disturbing new reality."
Team Trump can't even figure out what lies to tell about the coronavirus
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/12/team-trump-cant-even-figure-out-what-lies-to-tell-about-the-coronavirus/
"Donald Trump and the massive propaganda apparatus around him — call them "TrumpLand" — cannot decide what lie to tell about the new coronavirus, COVID-19, that is now exploding into a global pandemic. Simply not lying is of course not an acceptable option. The unofficial motto of the Trump administration is quite clearly "Lie about everything, all the time, even for no apparent reason." In this case, Trump is facing a very real PR crisis, and the first instinct of this president and his advocates is always to find some way to lie themselves out of their latest pickle. The problem this time, as many people have noted, is that you can't lie your way out of a pandemic. Even China, which is an authoritarian one-party state that lies to its population constantly about everything, was unable to bamboozle the public about the virus."
"Donald Trump and the massive propaganda apparatus around him — call them "TrumpLand" — cannot decide what lie to tell about the new coronavirus, COVID-19, that is now exploding into a global pandemic. Simply not lying is of course not an acceptable option. The unofficial motto of the Trump administration is quite clearly "Lie about everything, all the time, even for no apparent reason." In this case, Trump is facing a very real PR crisis, and the first instinct of this president and his advocates is always to find some way to lie themselves out of their latest pickle. The problem this time, as many people have noted, is that you can't lie your way out of a pandemic. Even China, which is an authoritarian one-party state that lies to its population constantly about everything, was unable to bamboozle the public about the virus."
Governor Ducey declares public health emergency in Arizona over coronavirus
https://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/governor-ducey-declares-public-health-emergency-in-arizona-regarding-coronavirus
"Governor Doug Ducey declared a public health emergency in Arizona Wednesday in response to the spread of the coronavirus"
"Governor Doug Ducey declared a public health emergency in Arizona Wednesday in response to the spread of the coronavirus"
Trump’s Oval Office failure
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/12/trumps-oval-office-failure/
"Unfortunately, the president’s delinquency in dealing with a worldwide pandemic and his utterly insufficient response, coupled with the blizzard of misinformation he and his lackeys are spreading, have real-world consequences. The blame for the health and economic crisis will lie largely with him. (Indeed, other democracies, contrary to Trump’s attacks, have acted with greater urgency and farsightedness than Trump to protect their people’s health.) Trump’s self-absorption and incompetence never fail to amaze. At a time when state and local governments are pleading for social distancing and banning large events, Trump refuses even to mention these important mitigation efforts. (He quietly canceled events, however, in Colorado, Wisconsin and Nevada.) To soothe his own ego, he quite literally is willing to make Americans sick."
"Unfortunately, the president’s delinquency in dealing with a worldwide pandemic and his utterly insufficient response, coupled with the blizzard of misinformation he and his lackeys are spreading, have real-world consequences. The blame for the health and economic crisis will lie largely with him. (Indeed, other democracies, contrary to Trump’s attacks, have acted with greater urgency and farsightedness than Trump to protect their people’s health.) Trump’s self-absorption and incompetence never fail to amaze. At a time when state and local governments are pleading for social distancing and banning large events, Trump refuses even to mention these important mitigation efforts. (He quietly canceled events, however, in Colorado, Wisconsin and Nevada.) To soothe his own ego, he quite literally is willing to make Americans sick."
Trump’s Speech Shows He Has No Idea What to Do About the Coronavirus
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/03/trump-speech-coronavirus-travel-ban-europe.html
"The cliche about Trump’s presidency is that it is malevolence tempered by incompetence. His haplessness would undermine his corruption and authoritarianism. But now, finally, the country faces a crisis in which Trump’s incompetence will not save us from him. His wholesale unfitness was on bright display from the Oval Office. It may be the most unsettling moment yet of this bleak era."
"The cliche about Trump’s presidency is that it is malevolence tempered by incompetence. His haplessness would undermine his corruption and authoritarianism. But now, finally, the country faces a crisis in which Trump’s incompetence will not save us from him. His wholesale unfitness was on bright display from the Oval Office. It may be the most unsettling moment yet of this bleak era."
The Worst Outcome
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/trump-ensuring-worst-possible-outcome-coronavirus-crisis/607867/
"What he is responsible for is his failure to respond promptly, and then his perverse and counterproductive choice of how to respond when action could be avoided no longer. Trump, in his speech, pleaded for an end to finger-pointing. It’s a strange thing for this president of all presidents to say. No American president, and precious few American politicians, have ever pointed so many fingers or hurled so much abuse as Donald Trump. What he means, of course, is: Don’t hold me to account for the things I did. But he did do them, and he owns responsibility for those things. He cannot escape it, and he will not escape it. More people will get sick because of his presidency than if somebody else were in charge. More people will suffer the financial hardship of sickness because of his presidency than if somebody else were in charge. The medical crisis will arrive faster and last longer than if somebody else were in charge. So, too, the economic crisis. More people will lose their jobs than if somebody else were in charge. More businesses will be pushed into bankruptcy than if somebody else were in charge. More savers will lose more savings than if somebody else were in charge. The damage to America’s global leadership will be greater than if somebody else were in charge. There is always something malign in Trump’s incompetence. He has no care or concern for others; he cannot absorb the trouble and suffering of others as real. He monotones his way through words of love and compassion, but those words plainly have no content or meaning for him. The only thing that is real is his squalid vanity. This virus threatens to pierce that vanity, so he denied it as long as he could. What he refuses to acknowledge cannot be real, can it? And even now that he has acknowledged the crisis, he still cannot act, because he does not know what to do. His only goal now is to shove blame onto others."
"What he is responsible for is his failure to respond promptly, and then his perverse and counterproductive choice of how to respond when action could be avoided no longer. Trump, in his speech, pleaded for an end to finger-pointing. It’s a strange thing for this president of all presidents to say. No American president, and precious few American politicians, have ever pointed so many fingers or hurled so much abuse as Donald Trump. What he means, of course, is: Don’t hold me to account for the things I did. But he did do them, and he owns responsibility for those things. He cannot escape it, and he will not escape it. More people will get sick because of his presidency than if somebody else were in charge. More people will suffer the financial hardship of sickness because of his presidency than if somebody else were in charge. The medical crisis will arrive faster and last longer than if somebody else were in charge. So, too, the economic crisis. More people will lose their jobs than if somebody else were in charge. More businesses will be pushed into bankruptcy than if somebody else were in charge. More savers will lose more savings than if somebody else were in charge. The damage to America’s global leadership will be greater than if somebody else were in charge. There is always something malign in Trump’s incompetence. He has no care or concern for others; he cannot absorb the trouble and suffering of others as real. He monotones his way through words of love and compassion, but those words plainly have no content or meaning for him. The only thing that is real is his squalid vanity. This virus threatens to pierce that vanity, so he denied it as long as he could. What he refuses to acknowledge cannot be real, can it? And even now that he has acknowledged the crisis, he still cannot act, because he does not know what to do. His only goal now is to shove blame onto others."
It’s now or never for the U.S. if it hopes to keep coronavirus from burning out of control
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/03/09/its-now-or-never-us-if-it-hopes-keep-coronavirus-burning-out-control/
"The best way to put out the fire is a vaccine, but that is over a year away. In the meantime, we must focus on reducing the height of the outbreak curve. This requires coordination and implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions. School closures, isolation of the sick, home quarantines of those who have come into contact with the sick, social distancing, telework and large-gathering cancellations must be implemented before the spread of the disease in any community reaches 1 percent. After that, science tells us, these interventions become far less effective. Simply put, as evidence of human-to-human transmission becomes clear in a community, officials must pull the trigger on aggressive interventions. Time matters. Two weeks of delay can mean the difference between success and failure. Public health experts learned this in 1918 when the Spanish flu killed 50 million to 100 million people around the globe. If we fail to take action, we will watch our health-care system be overwhelmed."
"The best way to put out the fire is a vaccine, but that is over a year away. In the meantime, we must focus on reducing the height of the outbreak curve. This requires coordination and implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions. School closures, isolation of the sick, home quarantines of those who have come into contact with the sick, social distancing, telework and large-gathering cancellations must be implemented before the spread of the disease in any community reaches 1 percent. After that, science tells us, these interventions become far less effective. Simply put, as evidence of human-to-human transmission becomes clear in a community, officials must pull the trigger on aggressive interventions. Time matters. Two weeks of delay can mean the difference between success and failure. Public health experts learned this in 1918 when the Spanish flu killed 50 million to 100 million people around the globe. If we fail to take action, we will watch our health-care system be overwhelmed."
Trump’s Dangerously Effective Coronavirus Propaganda
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/03/trump-coronavirus-threat/607825/
"The administration’s response to the outbreak has drawn some comparisons to that of the autocratic regimes in China and Iran, where information about the virus was tightly controlled to the detriment of the local populations. But what Trump has actually shown is that he doesn’t need to silence the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or censor the press to undermine politically inconvenient information about a public-health crisis—he can simply use his presidential bullhorn to drown it out. Scholars who study modern disinformation tactics have identified this approach as “censorship through noise.” (Steve Bannon, the former White House strategist, has described the strategy in blunter terms: “Flood the zone with sh*t.”) As I reported in my recent feature on the Trump campaign, the purpose of this sort of propaganda blizzard is not to inspire conviction in a certain set of facts; it’s to bombard people with so many contradictory claims, conspiracy theories, what-abouts, and distortions that they simply throw up their hands in confusion and exhaustion. Spend some time wading through the coronavirus content that’s spreading through the MAGA ecosystem, and it’s easy to see the strategy at work."
"The administration’s response to the outbreak has drawn some comparisons to that of the autocratic regimes in China and Iran, where information about the virus was tightly controlled to the detriment of the local populations. But what Trump has actually shown is that he doesn’t need to silence the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or censor the press to undermine politically inconvenient information about a public-health crisis—he can simply use his presidential bullhorn to drown it out. Scholars who study modern disinformation tactics have identified this approach as “censorship through noise.” (Steve Bannon, the former White House strategist, has described the strategy in blunter terms: “Flood the zone with sh*t.”) As I reported in my recent feature on the Trump campaign, the purpose of this sort of propaganda blizzard is not to inspire conviction in a certain set of facts; it’s to bombard people with so many contradictory claims, conspiracy theories, what-abouts, and distortions that they simply throw up their hands in confusion and exhaustion. Spend some time wading through the coronavirus content that’s spreading through the MAGA ecosystem, and it’s easy to see the strategy at work."
The Administration* Screwed Up the Coronavirus Response From the Jump and Is Now Covering Its Ass
https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a31405286/house-oversight-coronavirus-witnesses-summoned-white-house/
"The administration* screwed this up from jump and now is engaged in an all-out effort to cover its ass, not only on its original bungling, but also on the continuing consequences of that bungling. And any charge that this particular administration* is blocking congressional oversight is prima facie true at this point. Reuters helpfully connects a few more dots in that regard. The officials said that dozens of classified discussions about such topics as the scope of infections, quarantines and travel restrictions have been held since mid-January in a high-security meeting room at the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), a key player in the fight against the coronavirus. Staffers without security clearances, including government experts, were excluded from the interagency meetings, which included video conference calls, the sources said. “We had some very critical people who did not have security clearances who could not go,” one official said. “These should not be classified meetings. It was unnecessary.” The sources said the National Security Council (NSC), which advises the president on security issues, ordered the classification. “This came directly from the White House,” one official said. There is no good reason for this policy except to keep inconvenient information from the public. If this were just another crooked emoluments deal, that would be one (really bad) thing. But it’s not easy to think of anything concerning the public health in the middle of a global pandemic that you would want to keep from the general public unless it was for political reasons, which would be completely inexcusable in the current context. They really don’t know what they're doing."
"The administration* screwed this up from jump and now is engaged in an all-out effort to cover its ass, not only on its original bungling, but also on the continuing consequences of that bungling. And any charge that this particular administration* is blocking congressional oversight is prima facie true at this point. Reuters helpfully connects a few more dots in that regard. The officials said that dozens of classified discussions about such topics as the scope of infections, quarantines and travel restrictions have been held since mid-January in a high-security meeting room at the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), a key player in the fight against the coronavirus. Staffers without security clearances, including government experts, were excluded from the interagency meetings, which included video conference calls, the sources said. “We had some very critical people who did not have security clearances who could not go,” one official said. “These should not be classified meetings. It was unnecessary.” The sources said the National Security Council (NSC), which advises the president on security issues, ordered the classification. “This came directly from the White House,” one official said. There is no good reason for this policy except to keep inconvenient information from the public. If this were just another crooked emoluments deal, that would be one (really bad) thing. But it’s not easy to think of anything concerning the public health in the middle of a global pandemic that you would want to keep from the general public unless it was for political reasons, which would be completely inexcusable in the current context. They really don’t know what they're doing."
NIH's Fauci wishes Trump hadn't disbanded global health unit
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/nih-s-fauci-wishes-trump-hadn-t-disbanded-global-health-n1155866
"When it comes to responding to the coronavirus outbreak, one of Donald Trump's most important missteps came before anyone had even heard of COVID-19. As we discussed on Monday, the president's first error came back in 2018. It was two years ago when Trump ordered the shutdown of the White House National Security Council's entire global health security unit. NBC News had a good report on this recently, noting that the president's decision "to downsize the White House national security staff -- and eliminate jobs addressing global pandemics -- is likely to hamper the U.S. government's response to the coronavirus." But now that the public-health response is underway, is the president's 2018 decision having a practical effect? Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was unexpectedly candid on this point today. In fact, Dr. Fauci took some of his most direct swipes at the White House since the outbreak began. When [Democratic Rep. Gerald Connolly] asked him about the 2018 eradication of the global health unit on the White House's National Security Council, he answered, "It would be nice if the office was still there." The NIH leader added, "We worked very well with that office." Remember, Trump has struggled to explain why, exactly, he disbanded the global health security unit. As we talked about the other day, the president originally argued, "I'm a businessperson. I don't like having thousands of people around when you don't need them. When we need them, we can get them back very quickly." As it turns out, the administration cannot actually reassemble such a team "very quickly," though Trump, still unfamiliar with how much of the executive branch works, may not have known that."
"When it comes to responding to the coronavirus outbreak, one of Donald Trump's most important missteps came before anyone had even heard of COVID-19. As we discussed on Monday, the president's first error came back in 2018. It was two years ago when Trump ordered the shutdown of the White House National Security Council's entire global health security unit. NBC News had a good report on this recently, noting that the president's decision "to downsize the White House national security staff -- and eliminate jobs addressing global pandemics -- is likely to hamper the U.S. government's response to the coronavirus." But now that the public-health response is underway, is the president's 2018 decision having a practical effect? Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was unexpectedly candid on this point today. In fact, Dr. Fauci took some of his most direct swipes at the White House since the outbreak began. When [Democratic Rep. Gerald Connolly] asked him about the 2018 eradication of the global health unit on the White House's National Security Council, he answered, "It would be nice if the office was still there." The NIH leader added, "We worked very well with that office." Remember, Trump has struggled to explain why, exactly, he disbanded the global health security unit. As we talked about the other day, the president originally argued, "I'm a businessperson. I don't like having thousands of people around when you don't need them. When we need them, we can get them back very quickly." As it turns out, the administration cannot actually reassemble such a team "very quickly," though Trump, still unfamiliar with how much of the executive branch works, may not have known that."
Why Donald Trump Can’t Just Tweet Through the Coronavirus
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/coronavirus-crisis-trump-spin-fail.html
"Because the administration is built on sycophancy, the officials who should be spending their time and energy on the public’s health are instead wasting valuable effort on strenuously maintaining Trump’s fiction. The surgeon general—who is in his mid-40s—said on Sunday, absurdly, that Trump “sleeps less than I do and he’s healthier than what I am.” The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, began his remarks to the American people by praising Trump for his “decisive leadership.” “I think that’s the most important thing I want to say,” he said. Trump nodded. This Trump-pleasing weakness in government isn’t just superficial lip service—it’s having real effects. We now know that health officials at the CDC wanted to recommend that elderly and physically fragile Americans avoid flying on commercial airlines. The White House ordered that the air travel recommendation be removed, endangering the very people the virus is likely to affect most severely. CDC officials couldn’t explain why they refused to use the World Health Organization’s coronavirus test and instead tried to develop one that failed. Trump himself has been quite forthright about wanting to cultivate ignorance on the number of infected Americans: Not knowing the real number is as good as the number not existing. There is a silver lining here—not because it’s good news but because it’s useful to have clarity in alarming and confusing times, when different sources are saying different things. It’s this: The least trustworthy president in recent memory should be understood as a film negative during this crisis. The truth is an almost perfect inversion of what he says. He told the country it was OK to go to work with coronavirus. His economic adviser Larry Kudlow claimed on Friday that the virus was “contained.” White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway told Fox News viewers the virus was “contained,” and all thanks to Trump’s quick action, too!"
"Because the administration is built on sycophancy, the officials who should be spending their time and energy on the public’s health are instead wasting valuable effort on strenuously maintaining Trump’s fiction. The surgeon general—who is in his mid-40s—said on Sunday, absurdly, that Trump “sleeps less than I do and he’s healthier than what I am.” The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, began his remarks to the American people by praising Trump for his “decisive leadership.” “I think that’s the most important thing I want to say,” he said. Trump nodded. This Trump-pleasing weakness in government isn’t just superficial lip service—it’s having real effects. We now know that health officials at the CDC wanted to recommend that elderly and physically fragile Americans avoid flying on commercial airlines. The White House ordered that the air travel recommendation be removed, endangering the very people the virus is likely to affect most severely. CDC officials couldn’t explain why they refused to use the World Health Organization’s coronavirus test and instead tried to develop one that failed. Trump himself has been quite forthright about wanting to cultivate ignorance on the number of infected Americans: Not knowing the real number is as good as the number not existing. There is a silver lining here—not because it’s good news but because it’s useful to have clarity in alarming and confusing times, when different sources are saying different things. It’s this: The least trustworthy president in recent memory should be understood as a film negative during this crisis. The truth is an almost perfect inversion of what he says. He told the country it was OK to go to work with coronavirus. His economic adviser Larry Kudlow claimed on Friday that the virus was “contained.” White House senior adviser Kellyanne Conway told Fox News viewers the virus was “contained,” and all thanks to Trump’s quick action, too!"
Top Infectious Disease Expert Warns: “It Is Going to Get Worse”
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/anthony-fauci-coronavirus-comments-worse-trump.html
"Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top immunology official, contradicted the White House’s statements on the novel coronavirus in a hearing on Wednesday and asserted that the coronavirus outbreak will get far worse in the U.S."
"Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top immunology official, contradicted the White House’s statements on the novel coronavirus in a hearing on Wednesday and asserted that the coronavirus outbreak will get far worse in the U.S."
How soap absolutely annihilates the coronavirus
https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2020/3/11/21173187/coronavirus-covid-19-hand-washing-sanitizer-compared-soap-is-dope
"You’re not just washing viruses down the drain. Soap annihilates the coronavirus, a chemistry professor explains."
"You’re not just washing viruses down the drain. Soap annihilates the coronavirus, a chemistry professor explains."
Watchdog group demands Congress investigate if Betsy DeVos knew about efforts to spy on teachers
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/11/watchdog-group-demands-congress-investigate-if-betsy-devos-knew-about-efforts-to-spy-on-teachers/
"DeVos' brother, Blackwater founder Erik Prince, recruited a former British spy to oversee an operation to infiltrate the American Federation of Teacher's Michigan chapter on behalf of the far-right group Project Veritas, The New York Times reported earlier this week."
"DeVos' brother, Blackwater founder Erik Prince, recruited a former British spy to oversee an operation to infiltrate the American Federation of Teacher's Michigan chapter on behalf of the far-right group Project Veritas, The New York Times reported earlier this week."
Our health systems aren't built to handle a national crisis. That's why these early days are vital
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/3/9/1925933/-Our-health-systems-aren-t-built-to-handle-a-national-crisis-That-s-why-these-early-days-are-vital
"This is the whole point of current "self-quarantine" and "social distancing" measures, and the point of canceling large events in places with confirmed coronavirus cases. The expectation is not that the cancellation of large conferences and festivals will truly stop the virus' spread; individuals who are infected with the virus but don't know it will still likely go about their daily lives, sneezing and coughing and obligingly scattering the virus to new hosts. That is how viruses work. But by infecting fewer people, at a slower pace, the demand for medical services is itself slowed. This is also why public health experts have been so very alarmed at the Trump administration’s early-stages bungling, and especially at the continued unavailability or rationing of testing kits for the new coronavirus strain. When the disease reached epidemic levels in Wuhan, China, the government closed borders and instituted aggressive containment measures intended to block the epidemic from reaching farther, faster; that time was necessary to give China and all other countries more time to prepare for the virus' likely expansion. That was the point at which the United States was supposed to be ramping up testing (but the early tests were botched), breaking out the emergency plans for a pandemic (but Trump dissolved the national security team tasked with coordinating such plans), and making sure state and local governments were up to speed on what was going on. Instead, U.S. officials hesitated to make preparations for fear it would give Donald Trump the Angries. Trump himself contradicted officials who did make public statements, allegedly getting angry because he did not want the stock markets to go down in response. The net result is that the nation squandered weeks of preparedness time and we still, even today, have very little information about how the virus is spreading. That makes what happens next much more difficult."
"This is the whole point of current "self-quarantine" and "social distancing" measures, and the point of canceling large events in places with confirmed coronavirus cases. The expectation is not that the cancellation of large conferences and festivals will truly stop the virus' spread; individuals who are infected with the virus but don't know it will still likely go about their daily lives, sneezing and coughing and obligingly scattering the virus to new hosts. That is how viruses work. But by infecting fewer people, at a slower pace, the demand for medical services is itself slowed. This is also why public health experts have been so very alarmed at the Trump administration’s early-stages bungling, and especially at the continued unavailability or rationing of testing kits for the new coronavirus strain. When the disease reached epidemic levels in Wuhan, China, the government closed borders and instituted aggressive containment measures intended to block the epidemic from reaching farther, faster; that time was necessary to give China and all other countries more time to prepare for the virus' likely expansion. That was the point at which the United States was supposed to be ramping up testing (but the early tests were botched), breaking out the emergency plans for a pandemic (but Trump dissolved the national security team tasked with coordinating such plans), and making sure state and local governments were up to speed on what was going on. Instead, U.S. officials hesitated to make preparations for fear it would give Donald Trump the Angries. Trump himself contradicted officials who did make public statements, allegedly getting angry because he did not want the stock markets to go down in response. The net result is that the nation squandered weeks of preparedness time and we still, even today, have very little information about how the virus is spreading. That makes what happens next much more difficult."
The Republican Party is ideologically incapable of getting us out of this coronavirus crisis
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2020/3/9/1925893/-The-Republican-Party-is-ideologically-incapable-of-getting-us-out-of-this-crisis
"There is a lesson here for all Americans, one that is likely to grow more and more apparent in the coming weeks: Republicans are ideologically unprepared—in fact they are utterly incapable—of managing any crisis of this magnitude. Because their entire ideology assumes government is “bad,” they can’t adapt to any situation where government is clearly the only solution, whether its an economic crisis brought on by their own fiscal malfeasance, or here, a public health crisis of unprecedented proportions. They simply don’t have those tools in their tool kits. And they are so wedded to their ideology that they can’t even begin to comprehend just how complicated a crisis like this will be, or the measures that will necessary to protect Americans from disaster."
"There is a lesson here for all Americans, one that is likely to grow more and more apparent in the coming weeks: Republicans are ideologically unprepared—in fact they are utterly incapable—of managing any crisis of this magnitude. Because their entire ideology assumes government is “bad,” they can’t adapt to any situation where government is clearly the only solution, whether its an economic crisis brought on by their own fiscal malfeasance, or here, a public health crisis of unprecedented proportions. They simply don’t have those tools in their tool kits. And they are so wedded to their ideology that they can’t even begin to comprehend just how complicated a crisis like this will be, or the measures that will necessary to protect Americans from disaster."
A Federal Judge Condemned the “Roberts Court’s Assault on Democracy.’’ It’s About Time.
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/federal-judge-condemns-roberts-courts-assault-on-democracy.html
"Adelman, who sits in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, goes on to methodically chronicle that which is hardly news to anyone who has observed the rightward turn of the Supreme Court. His article brings into clear relief the court’s systemic attack on voting rights for minority and other marginalized communities, by way of striking down a key section of the Voting Rights Act, as well as repeated blessing of voter suppression and decisions not to adjudicate political gerrymandering. He notes that the court privileges the wealthy and corporate interests at the expense of the public. He lays out in detail the rise of the conservative legal movement, starting with the infamous 1971 Lewis Powell memo that served as a right-wing call to arms and tracing its progress through the current well-funded effort to reverse the New Deal in the courts. The article ultimately portrays the slow movement of the Supreme Court to the right—and then the far right—through a long line of cases that reversed the Warren court’s protections for minority groups and poor and working-class Americans. It shows how the court has undermined unions and boosted corporate interests. The court, he notes, has greatly contributed to income inequality, health care inequality, and the hollowing out of the American middle class. Adelman ends with this caution: We are thus in a new and arguably dangerous phase in American history. Democracy is inherently fragile, and it is even more so when government eschews policies that benefit all classes of Americans. We desperately need public officials who will work to revitalize our democratic republic. Unfortunately, the conservative Justices on the Roberts Court are not among them. Color commentary aside, none of these facts is a matter of dispute. Indeed, most of the article is the descriptive stuff of triumphalist Federalist Society touchdown dances at national conferences. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, among others, has been chronicling this shift for years now."
"Adelman, who sits in the Eastern District of Wisconsin, goes on to methodically chronicle that which is hardly news to anyone who has observed the rightward turn of the Supreme Court. His article brings into clear relief the court’s systemic attack on voting rights for minority and other marginalized communities, by way of striking down a key section of the Voting Rights Act, as well as repeated blessing of voter suppression and decisions not to adjudicate political gerrymandering. He notes that the court privileges the wealthy and corporate interests at the expense of the public. He lays out in detail the rise of the conservative legal movement, starting with the infamous 1971 Lewis Powell memo that served as a right-wing call to arms and tracing its progress through the current well-funded effort to reverse the New Deal in the courts. The article ultimately portrays the slow movement of the Supreme Court to the right—and then the far right—through a long line of cases that reversed the Warren court’s protections for minority groups and poor and working-class Americans. It shows how the court has undermined unions and boosted corporate interests. The court, he notes, has greatly contributed to income inequality, health care inequality, and the hollowing out of the American middle class. Adelman ends with this caution: We are thus in a new and arguably dangerous phase in American history. Democracy is inherently fragile, and it is even more so when government eschews policies that benefit all classes of Americans. We desperately need public officials who will work to revitalize our democratic republic. Unfortunately, the conservative Justices on the Roberts Court are not among them. Color commentary aside, none of these facts is a matter of dispute. Indeed, most of the article is the descriptive stuff of triumphalist Federalist Society touchdown dances at national conferences. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, among others, has been chronicling this shift for years now."
Nationalist Governments Are Trying To Rewrite Holocaust History — By Targeting Museums
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/polin-poland-museums-stola_n_5e627901c5b647a5bd315aaa
"Poland’s attack on Stola is part of a wider trend of far-right and nationalist governments waging a culture war against academic and historical institutions around the world. Governments have presented these policies as a way to take back control from so-called liberal elites or putting a stop to inaccurate information, but in practice they consolidate historical memory in the hands of the ruling party. In Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán praised the country’s anti-Semitic WWII-era leader and chased out a well-regarded liberal university. The government has passed laws to tighten control over theaters and cultural institutions, rewritten textbooks and banned gender studies. It also tried to put a pro-government historian in charge of a controversial Holocaust museum, resulting in widespread concern that the institution would whitewash the country’s role in the genocide. Meanwhile, Italy’s powerful far-right Lega Party proposed building a new museum in a former headquarters of Benito Mussolini’s Fascist party. Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro dismantled the Ministry of Culture, ordered the commemoration of the country’s 1964 military coup and defunded arts programs. Brazil’s Culture Secretary Roberto Alvim vowed earlier this year to launch an initiative to fund nationalist and religious art, although Alvim ended up losing his job after reporters found his remarks closely copied a 1933 speech from Nazi propagandist Joeseph Goebbels."
"Poland’s attack on Stola is part of a wider trend of far-right and nationalist governments waging a culture war against academic and historical institutions around the world. Governments have presented these policies as a way to take back control from so-called liberal elites or putting a stop to inaccurate information, but in practice they consolidate historical memory in the hands of the ruling party. In Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán praised the country’s anti-Semitic WWII-era leader and chased out a well-regarded liberal university. The government has passed laws to tighten control over theaters and cultural institutions, rewritten textbooks and banned gender studies. It also tried to put a pro-government historian in charge of a controversial Holocaust museum, resulting in widespread concern that the institution would whitewash the country’s role in the genocide. Meanwhile, Italy’s powerful far-right Lega Party proposed building a new museum in a former headquarters of Benito Mussolini’s Fascist party. Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro dismantled the Ministry of Culture, ordered the commemoration of the country’s 1964 military coup and defunded arts programs. Brazil’s Culture Secretary Roberto Alvim vowed earlier this year to launch an initiative to fund nationalist and religious art, although Alvim ended up losing his job after reporters found his remarks closely copied a 1933 speech from Nazi propagandist Joeseph Goebbels."
Wednesday, March 11, 2020
Trump Can’t Handle the Truth
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/09/opinion/trump-economy-coronavirus.html
"The point is that Trump’s luridly delusional response to the coronavirus and his conspiracy theorizing about Democrats and the news media aren’t really that different from the way the right dealt with the financial crisis a dozen years ago. True, last time the crazy talk wasn’t coming directly from the president of the United States. But that’s not the important distinction between then and now. No, what’s different now is that denial and the resulting delay are likely to have deadly consequences."
"The point is that Trump’s luridly delusional response to the coronavirus and his conspiracy theorizing about Democrats and the news media aren’t really that different from the way the right dealt with the financial crisis a dozen years ago. True, last time the crazy talk wasn’t coming directly from the president of the United States. But that’s not the important distinction between then and now. No, what’s different now is that denial and the resulting delay are likely to have deadly consequences."
Trump Administration Is Just Flat-Out Lying About Climate Change
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/03/the-trump-administration-is-just-flat-out-lying-about-climate-change
"The embedding of such misleading information is one of many attacks by the Trump administration on science—and comes amid a broader assault on expertise, whether coming from the intelligence community or the press. Trump has spent his first term rolling back environmental regulations, appointing fossil fuel company executives to environmental positions, and fostering a sense of uncertainty about the facts on climate change. Such deception could further erode public trust in the administration, including its scientific assessments that should, in theory, be apolitical. The Trump administration's fraught relationship to science has recently come to the forefront in its disorganized response to the coronavirus, with Trump’s mixed messages and self-serving politics helping create confusion at a moment in which the public is seeking answers."
"The embedding of such misleading information is one of many attacks by the Trump administration on science—and comes amid a broader assault on expertise, whether coming from the intelligence community or the press. Trump has spent his first term rolling back environmental regulations, appointing fossil fuel company executives to environmental positions, and fostering a sense of uncertainty about the facts on climate change. Such deception could further erode public trust in the administration, including its scientific assessments that should, in theory, be apolitical. The Trump administration's fraught relationship to science has recently come to the forefront in its disorganized response to the coronavirus, with Trump’s mixed messages and self-serving politics helping create confusion at a moment in which the public is seeking answers."
Trump Has Sabotaged America’s Coronavirus Response
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/01/31/coronavirus-china-trump-united-states-public-health-emergency-response/
"For the United States, the answers are especially worrying because the government has intentionally rendered itself incapable. In 2018, the Trump administration fired the government’s entire pandemic response chain of command, including the White House management infrastructure. In numerous phone calls and emails with key agencies across the U.S. government, the only consistent response I encountered was distressed confusion. If the United States still has a clear chain of command for pandemic response, the White House urgently needs to clarify what it is—not just for the public but for the government itself, which largely finds itself in the dark. When Ebola broke out in West Africa in 2014, President Barack Obama recognized that responding to the outbreak overseas, while also protecting Americans at home, involved multiple U.S. government departments and agencies, none of which were speaking to one another. Basically, the U.S. pandemic infrastructure was an enormous orchestra full of talented, egotistical players, each jockeying for solos and fame, refusing to rehearse, and demanding higher salaries—all without a conductor. To bring order and harmony to the chaos, rein in the agency egos, and create a coherent multiagency response overseas and on the homefront, Obama anointed a former vice presidential staffer, Ronald Klain, as a sort of “epidemic czar” inside the White House, clearly stipulated the roles and budgets of various agencies, and placed incident commanders in charge in each Ebola-hit country and inside the United States. The orchestra may have still had its off-key instruments, but it played the same tune."
"For the United States, the answers are especially worrying because the government has intentionally rendered itself incapable. In 2018, the Trump administration fired the government’s entire pandemic response chain of command, including the White House management infrastructure. In numerous phone calls and emails with key agencies across the U.S. government, the only consistent response I encountered was distressed confusion. If the United States still has a clear chain of command for pandemic response, the White House urgently needs to clarify what it is—not just for the public but for the government itself, which largely finds itself in the dark. When Ebola broke out in West Africa in 2014, President Barack Obama recognized that responding to the outbreak overseas, while also protecting Americans at home, involved multiple U.S. government departments and agencies, none of which were speaking to one another. Basically, the U.S. pandemic infrastructure was an enormous orchestra full of talented, egotistical players, each jockeying for solos and fame, refusing to rehearse, and demanding higher salaries—all without a conductor. To bring order and harmony to the chaos, rein in the agency egos, and create a coherent multiagency response overseas and on the homefront, Obama anointed a former vice presidential staffer, Ronald Klain, as a sort of “epidemic czar” inside the White House, clearly stipulated the roles and budgets of various agencies, and placed incident commanders in charge in each Ebola-hit country and inside the United States. The orchestra may have still had its off-key instruments, but it played the same tune."
Trump’s Quiet Power Grab
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/02/trumps-quiet-power-grab/607087/
"Impartiality is anathema to Trumpism. That the Trump administration wants to upend a long-standing system for assuring both the reality and appearance of fairness in agency adjudication may be shocking. But it is not surprising. If you consider yourself on block watch for threats to democracy, take your eyes for a moment off the president’s Twitter feed and turn your attention to administrative law. Danger is lurking amid the complexity."
"Impartiality is anathema to Trumpism. That the Trump administration wants to upend a long-standing system for assuring both the reality and appearance of fairness in agency adjudication may be shocking. But it is not surprising. If you consider yourself on block watch for threats to democracy, take your eyes for a moment off the president’s Twitter feed and turn your attention to administrative law. Danger is lurking amid the complexity."
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
The presidency is an actual job: This idiot can't do it
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/10/the-presidency-is-an-actual-job-this-idiot-cant-do-it/
"For three years, Trump leaned heavily on his skills as a well-practiced New York con man, and, accordingly, continued to cultivate the fanboy adulation of his Red Hat cult as his exclusive audience. Thanks in part to the blinding velocity of the firehose of news and a successful whitewashing effort provided by Fox News, previous nightmares such as the president's incompetent, callous and punitive reaction to Hurricane Maria have whizzed on by without Trump experiencing any blunt-force damage to his low-40s approval polling. But now Americans at large are waking up to a grotesque, unavoidable reality: This isn't new. Trump has always been staggeringly out of his depth as president, routinely overwhelmed by the rigors and requirements of the gig, while appearing to act based solely on his own political and financial desperation. For those of us who are overwhelmingly aware of his record, Trump's lack of qualifications for such a crucial job have always been blindingly obvious. As the coronavirus expands its reach, however, average voters who are neither political commentators or adoring loyalists deeply embedded inside his cult of tyranny are just now catching up in shocked horror to Trump's inability to handle the job."
"For three years, Trump leaned heavily on his skills as a well-practiced New York con man, and, accordingly, continued to cultivate the fanboy adulation of his Red Hat cult as his exclusive audience. Thanks in part to the blinding velocity of the firehose of news and a successful whitewashing effort provided by Fox News, previous nightmares such as the president's incompetent, callous and punitive reaction to Hurricane Maria have whizzed on by without Trump experiencing any blunt-force damage to his low-40s approval polling. But now Americans at large are waking up to a grotesque, unavoidable reality: This isn't new. Trump has always been staggeringly out of his depth as president, routinely overwhelmed by the rigors and requirements of the gig, while appearing to act based solely on his own political and financial desperation. For those of us who are overwhelmingly aware of his record, Trump's lack of qualifications for such a crucial job have always been blindingly obvious. As the coronavirus expands its reach, however, average voters who are neither political commentators or adoring loyalists deeply embedded inside his cult of tyranny are just now catching up in shocked horror to Trump's inability to handle the job."
EXCLUSIVE: Why Washington State Is Desperate For Trump To Declare A COVID-19 Emergency
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/exclusive-why-washington-state-is-desperate-for-trump-to-declare-a-covid-19-emergency
"As Washington state grapples with what may be the country’s worst outbreak of novel coronavirus, the absence of a COVID-19 emergency declaration from President Trump has hamstrung its ability to respond to the crisis. The state would like to apply for a Medicaid waiver that would let Washington give people more options for where to receive care, so that it can lessen the pressure on its already overtaxed health system. The problem for the state is that one of the types of waivers currently under discussion — a waiver known as 1135 — can be triggered only by the President declaring an emergency or a disaster under the Stafford Act, something he has notably failed to do, despite all signs indicating that the coronavirus outbreak stands to be a major public health crisis."
"As Washington state grapples with what may be the country’s worst outbreak of novel coronavirus, the absence of a COVID-19 emergency declaration from President Trump has hamstrung its ability to respond to the crisis. The state would like to apply for a Medicaid waiver that would let Washington give people more options for where to receive care, so that it can lessen the pressure on its already overtaxed health system. The problem for the state is that one of the types of waivers currently under discussion — a waiver known as 1135 — can be triggered only by the President declaring an emergency or a disaster under the Stafford Act, something he has notably failed to do, despite all signs indicating that the coronavirus outbreak stands to be a major public health crisis."
US isn’t prepared for outbreak: This is a ‘coronavirus winter, and we’re in the first week,’ disease specialist says
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/10/us-isnt-prepared-for-outbreak-this-is-a-coronavirus-winter-and-were-in-the-first-week.html
"The U.S. is not prepared for what is coming as COVID-19 spreads rapidly across the country, public health and infectious disease specialist Dr. Michael Osterholm told CNBC on Tuesday. The virus has surpassed the containment stage, he said, and the U.S. government is not responding appropriately for the magnitude of spread the country will likely see. “Right now we’re approaching this like it’s the Washington D.C. blizzard, for a couple days we’re shut down,” said Osterholm, who is director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. “This is actually a coronavirus winter and we’re in the first week"."
"The U.S. is not prepared for what is coming as COVID-19 spreads rapidly across the country, public health and infectious disease specialist Dr. Michael Osterholm told CNBC on Tuesday. The virus has surpassed the containment stage, he said, and the U.S. government is not responding appropriately for the magnitude of spread the country will likely see. “Right now we’re approaching this like it’s the Washington D.C. blizzard, for a couple days we’re shut down,” said Osterholm, who is director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. “This is actually a coronavirus winter and we’re in the first week"."
Trump’s Media Attacks Are Always Shameful. But in the Middle of the Coronavirus Crisis, They’re Dangerous.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/03/trump-campaign-email-attacks-media-coronavirus/
"Trump’s long assault on the press has always been reprehensible. In the midst of a public health crisis, it is…well, what’s beyond reprehensible? Horrendous? Disgraceful? Reckless? Irresponsible? Disgracefully horrendous and recklessly irresponsible? Whatever the adjective, Trump and his campaign have opted to smear and vilify the organizations that are needed to keep the public informed about a national emergency that has the potential to turn into a national disaster. By now, Trump whacking the media has become a running joke—a fan favorite at his rallies. In front of his adoring crowds, he denounces the press and claims that the TV cameras are being turned off at this moment (to censor his censure), even as the networks broadcast the spectacle. Many Americans have become inured to these sort of attacks. But with the country engaged in a full-on crisis that threatens individuals, communities, and the entire economy, Trump’s crusade to torpedo the media has become a grave threat. But Trump’s remarks and this campaign email prove that the commander in chief cares about only one particular threat, and that is the political threat he faces. He realizes the truth is not on his side. And in the middle of this crisis, that makes Trump an immediate menace and a risk for everyone."
"Trump’s long assault on the press has always been reprehensible. In the midst of a public health crisis, it is…well, what’s beyond reprehensible? Horrendous? Disgraceful? Reckless? Irresponsible? Disgracefully horrendous and recklessly irresponsible? Whatever the adjective, Trump and his campaign have opted to smear and vilify the organizations that are needed to keep the public informed about a national emergency that has the potential to turn into a national disaster. By now, Trump whacking the media has become a running joke—a fan favorite at his rallies. In front of his adoring crowds, he denounces the press and claims that the TV cameras are being turned off at this moment (to censor his censure), even as the networks broadcast the spectacle. Many Americans have become inured to these sort of attacks. But with the country engaged in a full-on crisis that threatens individuals, communities, and the entire economy, Trump’s crusade to torpedo the media has become a grave threat. But Trump’s remarks and this campaign email prove that the commander in chief cares about only one particular threat, and that is the political threat he faces. He realizes the truth is not on his side. And in the middle of this crisis, that makes Trump an immediate menace and a risk for everyone."
Trump Is Going to Cheat
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/02/hes-going-cheat/606643/
"If past is prologue, Trump will say absolutely anything necessary to attract and maintain support, including patent untruths. His pathological lying has been well documented and yet never ceases to stun. By one count, he has told more than 15,000 lies since taking office. A small sampling: After falsely declaring that Hurricane Dorian was headed toward Alabama, he displayed a doctored map to cover his tracks, and his chief of staff made the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration release a statement defending his lie. Trump also recently claimed that he rescued health coverage for people with preexisting conditions—even though he has gutted the Affordable Care Act and is suing to overturn it. One day after tweeting, “We will not be touching your Social Security or Medicare in Fiscal 2021 Budget,” his budget revealed cuts to both. How can Democrats run against a candidate who will simply deny his unpopular positions and make up nonexistent accomplishments? No amount of fact-checking can counter his constant stream of mendacity, which has become white noise in our political culture. Lying, of course, is only one challenge. The Democratic nominee will also have to contend with cheating."
"If past is prologue, Trump will say absolutely anything necessary to attract and maintain support, including patent untruths. His pathological lying has been well documented and yet never ceases to stun. By one count, he has told more than 15,000 lies since taking office. A small sampling: After falsely declaring that Hurricane Dorian was headed toward Alabama, he displayed a doctored map to cover his tracks, and his chief of staff made the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration release a statement defending his lie. Trump also recently claimed that he rescued health coverage for people with preexisting conditions—even though he has gutted the Affordable Care Act and is suing to overturn it. One day after tweeting, “We will not be touching your Social Security or Medicare in Fiscal 2021 Budget,” his budget revealed cuts to both. How can Democrats run against a candidate who will simply deny his unpopular positions and make up nonexistent accomplishments? No amount of fact-checking can counter his constant stream of mendacity, which has become white noise in our political culture. Lying, of course, is only one challenge. The Democratic nominee will also have to contend with cheating."
Trump Can Keep Lying About Coronavirus, But He Won’t Be Able To Hide The Deaths
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-lying-coronavirus_n_5e669d24c5b68d616458fefe
"President Donald Trump has gotten away with a staggering amount of lying over the course of his public life and has been particularly successful at using numbers to mislead and obfuscate. So far, Trump has lied about coronavirus a lot, and always to make it seem like things are better than they are. Trump lied when he said the number of Americans infected with coronavirus was declining even as health officials told him and the public the truth about it rising. He lied when he said there were enough coronavirus tests for every American even when Vice President Mike Pence ― who’s leading the administration’s response ― said that wasn’t true, and he lied when he blamed the shortage of tests on former President Barack Obama. He lied when he compared a year’s worth of influenza deaths to a few months’ worth of coronavirus fatalities in an effort to mislead Americans about the severity of the new disease. But his constant downplaying of the severity of the coronavirus outbreak is about to run headlong into reality."
"President Donald Trump has gotten away with a staggering amount of lying over the course of his public life and has been particularly successful at using numbers to mislead and obfuscate. So far, Trump has lied about coronavirus a lot, and always to make it seem like things are better than they are. Trump lied when he said the number of Americans infected with coronavirus was declining even as health officials told him and the public the truth about it rising. He lied when he said there were enough coronavirus tests for every American even when Vice President Mike Pence ― who’s leading the administration’s response ― said that wasn’t true, and he lied when he blamed the shortage of tests on former President Barack Obama. He lied when he compared a year’s worth of influenza deaths to a few months’ worth of coronavirus fatalities in an effort to mislead Americans about the severity of the new disease. But his constant downplaying of the severity of the coronavirus outbreak is about to run headlong into reality."
How Trump Got Trickled Down
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/10/opinion/trump-budget-2020.html
"One thing many people forget about the 2016 election is that as a candidate, Donald Trump promised to be a different kind of Republican. Unlike the mainstream of his party, he declared, he would raise taxes on the rich and wouldn’t cut programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid that ordinary Americans rely on. At the same time, he would invest large sums in rebuilding America’s infrastructure. He was lying. Trump’s only major legislative achievement, the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act, was absolutely standard modern Republicanism: huge tax cuts for corporations, plus tax breaks that overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy. The only unconventional aspect of the legislation was the variety of new tax scams it made possible, like the benefits for investors in “opportunity zones,” which were supposed to help poor communities but have actually enriched billionaire real estate developers. Trump also came very close to passing a health care “reform” that would have imposed savage cuts on Medicaid, eliminated protections for those with pre-existing conditions and taken away health insurance from more than 30 million Americans. And there has, of course, been no infrastructure bill; in fact, the Trump administration’s repeated proclamations of “Infrastructure Week” have become a running joke. Policy wonks are still poring over the latest Trump budget, released on Monday, but there was no hiding the same reverse Robin-Hoodism as in previous budgets: taking from the poor and middle class while giving to the rich. In other words, Trump in practice, as opposed to Trump in pretense, has turned out to be every bit as committed to trickle-down economics as Republicans in Congress have been for decades."
"One thing many people forget about the 2016 election is that as a candidate, Donald Trump promised to be a different kind of Republican. Unlike the mainstream of his party, he declared, he would raise taxes on the rich and wouldn’t cut programs like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid that ordinary Americans rely on. At the same time, he would invest large sums in rebuilding America’s infrastructure. He was lying. Trump’s only major legislative achievement, the 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act, was absolutely standard modern Republicanism: huge tax cuts for corporations, plus tax breaks that overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy. The only unconventional aspect of the legislation was the variety of new tax scams it made possible, like the benefits for investors in “opportunity zones,” which were supposed to help poor communities but have actually enriched billionaire real estate developers. Trump also came very close to passing a health care “reform” that would have imposed savage cuts on Medicaid, eliminated protections for those with pre-existing conditions and taken away health insurance from more than 30 million Americans. And there has, of course, been no infrastructure bill; in fact, the Trump administration’s repeated proclamations of “Infrastructure Week” have become a running joke. Policy wonks are still poring over the latest Trump budget, released on Monday, but there was no hiding the same reverse Robin-Hoodism as in previous budgets: taking from the poor and middle class while giving to the rich. In other words, Trump in practice, as opposed to Trump in pretense, has turned out to be every bit as committed to trickle-down economics as Republicans in Congress have been for decades."
The right wanted to destroy the "administrative state": Coronavirus is why we need it
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/07/the-right-wanted-to-destroy-the-administrative-state-coronavirus-is-why-we-need-it/
"There is nothing like a potential pandemic to remind an easily distracted electorate that governance matters. As the coronavirus spreads, the death count rises and people all over the world begin to fear infection, the incoherent and dangerous reaction of the Trump administration offers a high-stakes indictment. This is what happens when you elect someone to run the federal government who has no prerequisite knowledge, experience or ability for public policy and administration. The Obama administration opened 49 overseas offices of the Centers for Disease Control, designed to proactively prevent viruses from reaching pandemic proportions. Over the objections of medical experts within his own administration, our current president has shut down 39 of them. One of these satellite CDC offices was in China. For the past two years, Trump's budget proposal has included reductions to the CDC and the National Institute of Health. If we want proof that elections have implications on the actual work of government — on not merely who is able to give inspiring or outrageous speeches with a title in front of his or her name — the House Democratic majority prevented those cuts from going into effect. Congress could not, however, prevent Trump from neglecting the fundamental responsibilities of his position. In 2018, the director of the National Security Council's global pandemic prevention effort resigned, and his entire staff subsequently did likewise. Trump has not replaced them, creating massive vulnerabilities in the U.S. response to the coronavirus outbreak. Concerned citizens can relax, though, because Trump has appointed Vice President Mike Pence as the "coronavirus czar." Pence's previous high-water mark in public health was denying, and then delaying, the implementation of clean needle exchange programs when he was governor of Indiana — a display of evangelical moralism that experts agree was partly responsible for the increase of HIV infection rates in the state."
"There is nothing like a potential pandemic to remind an easily distracted electorate that governance matters. As the coronavirus spreads, the death count rises and people all over the world begin to fear infection, the incoherent and dangerous reaction of the Trump administration offers a high-stakes indictment. This is what happens when you elect someone to run the federal government who has no prerequisite knowledge, experience or ability for public policy and administration. The Obama administration opened 49 overseas offices of the Centers for Disease Control, designed to proactively prevent viruses from reaching pandemic proportions. Over the objections of medical experts within his own administration, our current president has shut down 39 of them. One of these satellite CDC offices was in China. For the past two years, Trump's budget proposal has included reductions to the CDC and the National Institute of Health. If we want proof that elections have implications on the actual work of government — on not merely who is able to give inspiring or outrageous speeches with a title in front of his or her name — the House Democratic majority prevented those cuts from going into effect. Congress could not, however, prevent Trump from neglecting the fundamental responsibilities of his position. In 2018, the director of the National Security Council's global pandemic prevention effort resigned, and his entire staff subsequently did likewise. Trump has not replaced them, creating massive vulnerabilities in the U.S. response to the coronavirus outbreak. Concerned citizens can relax, though, because Trump has appointed Vice President Mike Pence as the "coronavirus czar." Pence's previous high-water mark in public health was denying, and then delaying, the implementation of clean needle exchange programs when he was governor of Indiana — a display of evangelical moralism that experts agree was partly responsible for the increase of HIV infection rates in the state."
Trump Is Counting on the Supreme Court to Save Him
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/mazars-lawsuit/607540/
"Although Trump is suing his accountants and his bankers as a private citizen, his case has been joined by the Department of Justice. Solicitor General Noel Francisco has signed an amicus brief on behalf of the United States. It is an astonishing document. It invites the Supreme Court to junk two centuries of precedent—and to substitute an entirely new system of judicial review of congressional subpoenas that involve a president. A legislative subpoena must therefore satisfy heightened requirements when it seeks information from the President. At the threshold, the full chamber should unequivocally authorize a subpoena against the President. Moreover, the legislative purpose should be set forth with specificity. Courts should not presume that the purpose is legitimate, but instead should scrutinize it with care. And as with information protected by executive privilege, information sought from the President should be demonstrably critical to the legislative purpose. A congressional committee cannot evade these heightened requirements merely by directing the subpoena to third-party custodians, for such agents generally assume the rights and privileges of their principal, as this Court has recognized in analogous cases. All the requirements in that above paragraph were devised for purposes of this litigation. None of them has ever been enforced—none of them has ever been imagined—in the previous 230 years of skirmishing between Congresses and presidents. Every must and should and cannot was invented in this very brief, for the immediate legal purposes of this president in this dilemma. The solicitor general might as well have said that subpoenas must be delivered by a sled pulled by flying reindeer, for all the connection between these demands and the previous constitutional history of the United States. As the House of Representatives noted in the brief it filed, previous Congresses have obtained the bank records of Presidents Andrew Johnson and Jimmy Carter, and the tax records of President Richard Nixon.'
"Although Trump is suing his accountants and his bankers as a private citizen, his case has been joined by the Department of Justice. Solicitor General Noel Francisco has signed an amicus brief on behalf of the United States. It is an astonishing document. It invites the Supreme Court to junk two centuries of precedent—and to substitute an entirely new system of judicial review of congressional subpoenas that involve a president. A legislative subpoena must therefore satisfy heightened requirements when it seeks information from the President. At the threshold, the full chamber should unequivocally authorize a subpoena against the President. Moreover, the legislative purpose should be set forth with specificity. Courts should not presume that the purpose is legitimate, but instead should scrutinize it with care. And as with information protected by executive privilege, information sought from the President should be demonstrably critical to the legislative purpose. A congressional committee cannot evade these heightened requirements merely by directing the subpoena to third-party custodians, for such agents generally assume the rights and privileges of their principal, as this Court has recognized in analogous cases. All the requirements in that above paragraph were devised for purposes of this litigation. None of them has ever been enforced—none of them has ever been imagined—in the previous 230 years of skirmishing between Congresses and presidents. Every must and should and cannot was invented in this very brief, for the immediate legal purposes of this president in this dilemma. The solicitor general might as well have said that subpoenas must be delivered by a sled pulled by flying reindeer, for all the connection between these demands and the previous constitutional history of the United States. As the House of Representatives noted in the brief it filed, previous Congresses have obtained the bank records of Presidents Andrew Johnson and Jimmy Carter, and the tax records of President Richard Nixon.'
Testing for the coronavirus might have stopped it. Now it’s too late.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/coronavirus-testing-united-states/2020/03/05/a6ced5aa-5f0f-11ea-9055-5fa12981bbbf_story.html
"The battle to keep covid-19 from becoming established in the United States is probably over without a single shot being fired. We were not outwitted, outpaced or outflanked. We knew what was coming. We just twiddled our thumbs as the coronavirus waltzed in. The first thing officials need when responding to an infectious disease is a way to test for it — a way to tell who has it and who is at risk. Dozens of such test procedures have been produced in the scant weeks since covid-19 announced itself to the world by shutting down Wuhan, China, a city the size of New York. Public health agencies around the globe have generated huge amounts of data on how well these tests work and have rolled them out on a massive scale. South Korea alone has tested more than 100,000 of its citizens. But the United States has lagged far behind the rest of the world in testing for the new coronavirus. As a result, outbreaks here are likely to be more numerous and more difficult to control than they would have been otherwise. I research infectious disease and how to fight it, so I know how important it is to detect outbreaks early. The covid-19 outbreak is the largest acute infectious-disease emergency most of us have experienced. And we may have let it go undetected here for too long."
"The battle to keep covid-19 from becoming established in the United States is probably over without a single shot being fired. We were not outwitted, outpaced or outflanked. We knew what was coming. We just twiddled our thumbs as the coronavirus waltzed in. The first thing officials need when responding to an infectious disease is a way to test for it — a way to tell who has it and who is at risk. Dozens of such test procedures have been produced in the scant weeks since covid-19 announced itself to the world by shutting down Wuhan, China, a city the size of New York. Public health agencies around the globe have generated huge amounts of data on how well these tests work and have rolled them out on a massive scale. South Korea alone has tested more than 100,000 of its citizens. But the United States has lagged far behind the rest of the world in testing for the new coronavirus. As a result, outbreaks here are likely to be more numerous and more difficult to control than they would have been otherwise. I research infectious disease and how to fight it, so I know how important it is to detect outbreaks early. The covid-19 outbreak is the largest acute infectious-disease emergency most of us have experienced. And we may have let it go undetected here for too long."
Presidential tweets can't paper over Trump's coronavirus failures
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/presidential-tweets-can-t-paper-over-trump-s-coronavirus-failures-n1153346
"For three years, a question about Trump has lingered in the background: what would happen when the nation's first amateur president faced a genuine crisis? One he couldn't overpower with spectacle and nonsense? One that required him to listen, learn, and lead with a steady hand? Such a crisis has arrived and Trump is making clear that he's not up to the task. The president's go-to moves are familiar -- lie, divert blame, contradict experts, tout a personal expertise that exists in his imagination -- but they are a poor fit for the dangerous circumstances."
"For three years, a question about Trump has lingered in the background: what would happen when the nation's first amateur president faced a genuine crisis? One he couldn't overpower with spectacle and nonsense? One that required him to listen, learn, and lead with a steady hand? Such a crisis has arrived and Trump is making clear that he's not up to the task. The president's go-to moves are familiar -- lie, divert blame, contradict experts, tout a personal expertise that exists in his imagination -- but they are a poor fit for the dangerous circumstances."
'Code for Massive Cuts': Audio Shows GOP Sen. Joni Ernst Telling Donors She Wants 'Changes' to Medicare, Medicaid
https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/02/14/code-massive-cuts-audio-shows-gop-sen-joni-ernst-telling-donors-she-wants-changes
"The audio clip comes months after the Democratic super PAC American Bridge posted a video of Ernst telling a town hall audience in August that members of Congress should negotiate changes to Social Security "behind closed doors" to avoid scrutiny from advocacy groups and the press."
"The audio clip comes months after the Democratic super PAC American Bridge posted a video of Ernst telling a town hall audience in August that members of Congress should negotiate changes to Social Security "behind closed doors" to avoid scrutiny from advocacy groups and the press."
The White House Has Hired Two College Seniors to Fill Top Posts in Recent Weeks
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/white-house-hired-two-college-seniors-fill-top-posts.html
"In recent weeks, the White House has tapped two college seniors to take on key roles in the administration as there seems to be a premium on loyalty above all else. The most recent hire is Anthony Labruna, who is scheduled to start on Monday as deputy White house liaison at the Department of Commerce, according to Politico. Some in the department are reportedly “pretty concerned” that someone who is so young and inexperienced will take over a job that involves filling political vacancies with qualified people. “It’s not a job that you take a kid who doesn’t know anything about the government,” a source said. Labruna is set to graduate from Iowa State University in early May and had worked on Trump’s 2020 Iowa campaign. According to his Facebook page, Labruna is 22, which would make him one year younger than James Bacon, who was tapped late last month to be one of the top officials in the Presidential Personnel Office."
"In recent weeks, the White House has tapped two college seniors to take on key roles in the administration as there seems to be a premium on loyalty above all else. The most recent hire is Anthony Labruna, who is scheduled to start on Monday as deputy White house liaison at the Department of Commerce, according to Politico. Some in the department are reportedly “pretty concerned” that someone who is so young and inexperienced will take over a job that involves filling political vacancies with qualified people. “It’s not a job that you take a kid who doesn’t know anything about the government,” a source said. Labruna is set to graduate from Iowa State University in early May and had worked on Trump’s 2020 Iowa campaign. According to his Facebook page, Labruna is 22, which would make him one year younger than James Bacon, who was tapped late last month to be one of the top officials in the Presidential Personnel Office."
Trump Promised to Protect Medicare. That’s Not What He Said Two Weeks Ago.
https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2020/02/trump-promised-to-protect-medicare-thats-not-what-he-said-two-weeks-ago/
"During a January interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, CNBC’s Joe Kernen asked if cuts to entitlements, a euphemism for programs like Medicare and Social Security, would ever be on his agenda. “At some point they will be,” Trump answered. “It’ll be toward the end of the year. The growth is going to be incredible. And at the right time, we will take a look at that.” As the New York Times reported, it wasn’t the first time Trump threatened cuts to popular safety-net programs: The president has already proposed cuts for some safety-net programs. His last budget proposal called for a total of $1.9 trillion in cost savings from mandatory safety-net programs, like Medicaid and Medicare. It also called for spending $26 billion less on Social Security programs, the federal retirement program, including a $10 billion cut to the Social Security Disability Insurance program, which provides benefits to disabled workers."
"During a January interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, CNBC’s Joe Kernen asked if cuts to entitlements, a euphemism for programs like Medicare and Social Security, would ever be on his agenda. “At some point they will be,” Trump answered. “It’ll be toward the end of the year. The growth is going to be incredible. And at the right time, we will take a look at that.” As the New York Times reported, it wasn’t the first time Trump threatened cuts to popular safety-net programs: The president has already proposed cuts for some safety-net programs. His last budget proposal called for a total of $1.9 trillion in cost savings from mandatory safety-net programs, like Medicaid and Medicare. It also called for spending $26 billion less on Social Security programs, the federal retirement program, including a $10 billion cut to the Social Security Disability Insurance program, which provides benefits to disabled workers."
Trump budget would cut Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security while expanding tax cuts for the rich
https://www.salon.com/2020/02/10/trump-budget-would-cut-medicare-medicaid-and-social-security-while-expanding-tax-cuts-for-the-rich/
"The plan also calls for a steep 8% cut to the Education budget; a 9% cut to the Health and Human Services Budget, including the Centers for Disease Control; and a 26% cut to the Environmental Protection Agency budget. The Interior Department would see a 13% budget cut; the Department of Housing and Urban Development would see a 15% cut; and both the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development would be slashed by 22%. However, Trump's budget proposal calls for an increase to the Homeland Security funding and $2 billion in additional funding for his border wall, down from $5 billion last year. Despite the deep cuts, the budget plan acknowledges that the proposal would fail to eliminate the deficit over the next decade. Trump's advisers vowed to eliminate the deficit by 2028, but it has only grown instead."
"The plan also calls for a steep 8% cut to the Education budget; a 9% cut to the Health and Human Services Budget, including the Centers for Disease Control; and a 26% cut to the Environmental Protection Agency budget. The Interior Department would see a 13% budget cut; the Department of Housing and Urban Development would see a 15% cut; and both the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development would be slashed by 22%. However, Trump's budget proposal calls for an increase to the Homeland Security funding and $2 billion in additional funding for his border wall, down from $5 billion last year. Despite the deep cuts, the budget plan acknowledges that the proposal would fail to eliminate the deficit over the next decade. Trump's advisers vowed to eliminate the deficit by 2028, but it has only grown instead."
The Trump administration has contradicted itself on coronavirus no fewer than 14 times in less than a month
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/03/09/trump-administration-has-contradicted-itself-coronavirus-no-fewer-than-14-times-less-than-month/
"Initially, warmer weather would kill it. Then it wouldn’t. The number of cases would soon be close to zero. Then they rose. It should be treated like the flu. Except Americans should know it is deadlier. As many as 1 million people could be tested by the end of last week. Until they weren’t. As President Trump has tried to contain the potential health, economic and political consequences of the coronavirus over the past month, he and administration officials have repeatedly undercut one another’s messaging about their efforts to combat the virus. We show exactly how in the video above. Over the past 30 days, Trump and members of his administration have contradicted other Trump officials at least 14 times on various parts of the coronavirus response. Often, Trump has sought to play down the threat with a mix of selectively presented facts and false statements. At other points, Trump officials have focused some of their remarks on praising the president during interviews and press gaggles about the virus. “A lot of people think [the coronavirus] goes away in April with the heat,” Trump said Feb. 10. Three days later, Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told CNN, “This virus is probably with us beyond this season or beyond this year.” Laying out his administration’s response to the virus at a news conference on Feb. 26, Trump said Americans should “view this the same as the flu.” One week later, Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Congress that the coronavirus mortality rate is “multiple times” higher than the seasonal flu. Later that day, Trump told Fox News that based on his “hunch,” the World Health Organization’s coronavirus mortality rate was a “false number.” On multiple occasions, Trump has suggested that a coronavirus vaccine may be available sooner than expected, even as Fauci has repeatedly said a potential vaccine wouldn’t be available for at least a year."
"Initially, warmer weather would kill it. Then it wouldn’t. The number of cases would soon be close to zero. Then they rose. It should be treated like the flu. Except Americans should know it is deadlier. As many as 1 million people could be tested by the end of last week. Until they weren’t. As President Trump has tried to contain the potential health, economic and political consequences of the coronavirus over the past month, he and administration officials have repeatedly undercut one another’s messaging about their efforts to combat the virus. We show exactly how in the video above. Over the past 30 days, Trump and members of his administration have contradicted other Trump officials at least 14 times on various parts of the coronavirus response. Often, Trump has sought to play down the threat with a mix of selectively presented facts and false statements. At other points, Trump officials have focused some of their remarks on praising the president during interviews and press gaggles about the virus. “A lot of people think [the coronavirus] goes away in April with the heat,” Trump said Feb. 10. Three days later, Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told CNN, “This virus is probably with us beyond this season or beyond this year.” Laying out his administration’s response to the virus at a news conference on Feb. 26, Trump said Americans should “view this the same as the flu.” One week later, Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Congress that the coronavirus mortality rate is “multiple times” higher than the seasonal flu. Later that day, Trump told Fox News that based on his “hunch,” the World Health Organization’s coronavirus mortality rate was a “false number.” On multiple occasions, Trump has suggested that a coronavirus vaccine may be available sooner than expected, even as Fauci has repeatedly said a potential vaccine wouldn’t be available for at least a year."
Monday, March 9, 2020
President Trump Is Unfit for This Crisis. Period.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/09/opinion/trump-corona-cdc.html
"Whose side is the Trump administration on? Based on every public appearance we’ve seen so far — whether it’s from a cabinet member or the director of the Centers for Disease Control or the president himself — the answer is clear: not the public’s. President Trump, hellbent on re-election, is focused on massaging numbers and silencing bearers of bad news. That’s what autocrats do. And it’s endangering lives."
"Whose side is the Trump administration on? Based on every public appearance we’ve seen so far — whether it’s from a cabinet member or the director of the Centers for Disease Control or the president himself — the answer is clear: not the public’s. President Trump, hellbent on re-election, is focused on massaging numbers and silencing bearers of bad news. That’s what autocrats do. And it’s endangering lives."
Trump Weekends in Florida as Fear of the Coronavirus Rises
https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/trump-weekends-in-florida-as-fear-of-the-coronavirus-rises
"Trump, meanwhile, evidently decided that the situation isn’t serious enough to keep him in Washington. From the beginning, he has sought to minimize the seriousness of the emerging epidemic, and he is still at it. That’s when he’s not praising himself for how he and the U.S. government have responded to the crisis or offering himself as an expert. During a remarkable press conference at the Atlanta headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on Friday, Trump mentioned an uncle who had taught science at M.I.T. and said, “I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it. Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should have done this instead of running for President"."
"Trump, meanwhile, evidently decided that the situation isn’t serious enough to keep him in Washington. From the beginning, he has sought to minimize the seriousness of the emerging epidemic, and he is still at it. That’s when he’s not praising himself for how he and the U.S. government have responded to the crisis or offering himself as an expert. During a remarkable press conference at the Atlanta headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, on Friday, Trump mentioned an uncle who had taught science at M.I.T. and said, “I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it. Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should have done this instead of running for President"."
Trump Bears Full Responsibility for Botched Response to Coronavirus in US
https://truthout.org/articles/trump-bears-full-responsibility-for-botched-response-to-coronavirus-in-us/
"A serious president would have been taking the lead in organizing an international response. But Trump was busy doing other things. In addition to his golf games, Trump was holding campaign rallies and fundraisers around the country. When he wasn’t traveling, he was busy on Twitter making boasts about the economy, lying about his poll results and directing schoolyard taunts against his political opponents. With such a busy schedule, how could we expect Trump to have time to worry about a pandemic? It gets worse. Trump had dismantled the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) team to deal with pandemics. The CDC was also coping with Trump budget cuts, and is facing another cut of 16 percent slated for next year. Trump also attacked those who tried to warn of the risks of the virus. He claimed the whole thing was a Democratic hoax, and said that the United States had 15 cases and that the number would fall quickly. He then went full Trumpian in his management style, pushing aside the public health experts at the CDC, and putting Vice President Mike Pence in charge of protecting the country from the pandemic. Pence’s main credentials for this task are a disbelief in science (he doesn’t believe in evolution or global warming) and a failed effort to stem the spread of AIDS when he was governor of Indiana. Trump also attempted to clamp down on any accurate, concrete information that would contradict his “no-big-deal” story. He required that Pence clear all statements from the CDC. Using his famed vindictiveness, he also retaliated against a Health and Human Services whistleblower who reported that people exposed to coronavirus on a cruise ship were greeted by health care workers without protective gear or training. In short, the fact that we are likely facing a serious pandemic, unlike any we have seen in more than a century, is 100 percent Trump’s fault. Because of his vanity and ineptitude, people will die, and many more will get sick."
"A serious president would have been taking the lead in organizing an international response. But Trump was busy doing other things. In addition to his golf games, Trump was holding campaign rallies and fundraisers around the country. When he wasn’t traveling, he was busy on Twitter making boasts about the economy, lying about his poll results and directing schoolyard taunts against his political opponents. With such a busy schedule, how could we expect Trump to have time to worry about a pandemic? It gets worse. Trump had dismantled the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) team to deal with pandemics. The CDC was also coping with Trump budget cuts, and is facing another cut of 16 percent slated for next year. Trump also attacked those who tried to warn of the risks of the virus. He claimed the whole thing was a Democratic hoax, and said that the United States had 15 cases and that the number would fall quickly. He then went full Trumpian in his management style, pushing aside the public health experts at the CDC, and putting Vice President Mike Pence in charge of protecting the country from the pandemic. Pence’s main credentials for this task are a disbelief in science (he doesn’t believe in evolution or global warming) and a failed effort to stem the spread of AIDS when he was governor of Indiana. Trump also attempted to clamp down on any accurate, concrete information that would contradict his “no-big-deal” story. He required that Pence clear all statements from the CDC. Using his famed vindictiveness, he also retaliated against a Health and Human Services whistleblower who reported that people exposed to coronavirus on a cruise ship were greeted by health care workers without protective gear or training. In short, the fact that we are likely facing a serious pandemic, unlike any we have seen in more than a century, is 100 percent Trump’s fault. Because of his vanity and ineptitude, people will die, and many more will get sick."
Trump struggles to explain why he disbanded his global health team
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/trump-struggles-explain-why-he-disbanded-his-global-health-team-n1153221
"It's worth emphasizing that this is Trump's second explanation related to his decision to disband his global health security team. "I'm a business person," he explained two weeks ago in response to a similar question. "I don't like having thousands of people around when you don't need them. When we need them, we can get them back very quickly." As it turns out, the administration cannot actually reassemble such a team "very quickly," though Trump, still unfamiliar with how much of the executive branch works, may not have known that. It set the stage for this new argument: Trump dissolved the White House's pandemic team because he had no idea he might need a pandemic team. Except, that's not an especially satisfying answer. The whole point of having a team focused on epidemiological threats is (a) viral outbreaks can happen; (b) one never knows when they'll happen; and (c) countries want to be prepared when they do happen. According to the president, "you can never really think is going to happen," but the National Security Council's team existed precisely because officials recognized the possible hazard. Indeed, as the New York Times noted overnight that President Barack Obama established the Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense at the National Security Council after the 2014 Ebola outbreak, making clear that some folks were acutely aware of possibilities like these. It's as if the president is unfamiliar with the idea of insurance on a conceptual level."
"It's worth emphasizing that this is Trump's second explanation related to his decision to disband his global health security team. "I'm a business person," he explained two weeks ago in response to a similar question. "I don't like having thousands of people around when you don't need them. When we need them, we can get them back very quickly." As it turns out, the administration cannot actually reassemble such a team "very quickly," though Trump, still unfamiliar with how much of the executive branch works, may not have known that. It set the stage for this new argument: Trump dissolved the White House's pandemic team because he had no idea he might need a pandemic team. Except, that's not an especially satisfying answer. The whole point of having a team focused on epidemiological threats is (a) viral outbreaks can happen; (b) one never knows when they'll happen; and (c) countries want to be prepared when they do happen. According to the president, "you can never really think is going to happen," but the National Security Council's team existed precisely because officials recognized the possible hazard. Indeed, as the New York Times noted overnight that President Barack Obama established the Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense at the National Security Council after the 2014 Ebola outbreak, making clear that some folks were acutely aware of possibilities like these. It's as if the president is unfamiliar with the idea of insurance on a conceptual level."
Italy Locks Down Entire Country To Help Prevent Spread Of Coronavirus
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/italy-lockdown-coronavirus_n_5e66ab53c5b605572809d54d
"Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced all of Italy is on lockdown as the country works to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The northern part of the country, which includes 16 million people, had already been on lockdown. The new lockdown goes into effect on Tuesday and lasts until April 3. Conte said travel within the country should only occur if completely necessary. Public gatherings, like sporting events, are canceled. “Stay at home,” Conte said in a press conference Monday. People should only travel for urgent work or emergencies, the PM said. Schools and universities will stay closed, as well as theaters and gyms. The government’s decree also calls for banning public events like weddings and funerals. The country, which has about 60 million people living in it, had over 9,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus and at least 463 dead as of Monday."
"Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced all of Italy is on lockdown as the country works to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The northern part of the country, which includes 16 million people, had already been on lockdown. The new lockdown goes into effect on Tuesday and lasts until April 3. Conte said travel within the country should only occur if completely necessary. Public gatherings, like sporting events, are canceled. “Stay at home,” Conte said in a press conference Monday. People should only travel for urgent work or emergencies, the PM said. Schools and universities will stay closed, as well as theaters and gyms. The government’s decree also calls for banning public events like weddings and funerals. The country, which has about 60 million people living in it, had over 9,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus and at least 463 dead as of Monday."
Dow sinks 2,000 points in worst day since 2008, S&P 500 drops more than 7%
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/08/dow-futures-drop-700-points-as-all-out-oil-price-war-adds-to-coronavirus-stress.html
"The Dow dropped 2,013.7 points — 7.79% — as Boeing, Apple, Goldman Sachs and Caterpillar cut the index by at least 100 points each. The Dow ended the day at 23,851.02 and represented its single-worst day since Oct. 15, 2008, when it fell 7.87%. The S&P 500 plunged 7.6% to 2,746.56 as investors punished financials and energy stocks. Energy names in the S&P 500, including Exxon Mobil, Hess and Marathon Oil, finished the day down more than 20%. Financial stocks ended down more than 10%. The equity benchmark suffered its worst day since Dec. 1 2008. The Nasdaq Composite fell 7.29% to end the day at 7,950.68. The massive sell-off triggered a key market circuit breaker minutes after the opening bell. Trading was halted for 15 minutes until reopening at 9:49 a.m. ET."
"The Dow dropped 2,013.7 points — 7.79% — as Boeing, Apple, Goldman Sachs and Caterpillar cut the index by at least 100 points each. The Dow ended the day at 23,851.02 and represented its single-worst day since Oct. 15, 2008, when it fell 7.87%. The S&P 500 plunged 7.6% to 2,746.56 as investors punished financials and energy stocks. Energy names in the S&P 500, including Exxon Mobil, Hess and Marathon Oil, finished the day down more than 20%. Financial stocks ended down more than 10%. The equity benchmark suffered its worst day since Dec. 1 2008. The Nasdaq Composite fell 7.29% to end the day at 7,950.68. The massive sell-off triggered a key market circuit breaker minutes after the opening bell. Trading was halted for 15 minutes until reopening at 9:49 a.m. ET."
Italy’s Coronavirus Response Is a Warning From the Future
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2020/03/italy-coronavirus-covid19-west-europe-future/607660/
"Italians woke up on Sunday morning, and it was already the future. Overnight, the government announced the most dramatic measures yet taken by a democracy to try to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Other Western countries are watching closely, worried they may soon have to follow Italy’s lead. Rome placed severe travel restrictions on the entire Lombardy region surrounding Milan—the country’s economic, fashion, and media capital—and on 14 other provinces across the wealthy north, including Venice and parts of the Emilia Romagna region. In this area of 16 million people, the coronavirus’s European epicenter, where the number of cases has been rising rapidly, Italy banned all public gatherings—no weddings, funerals, concerts, sporting events, discos, bingo games, video arcades, or Mass—until April 3. While trains and planes are still operational, and running on time, the government is forbidding people from leaving unless absolutely necessary."
"Italians woke up on Sunday morning, and it was already the future. Overnight, the government announced the most dramatic measures yet taken by a democracy to try to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Other Western countries are watching closely, worried they may soon have to follow Italy’s lead. Rome placed severe travel restrictions on the entire Lombardy region surrounding Milan—the country’s economic, fashion, and media capital—and on 14 other provinces across the wealthy north, including Venice and parts of the Emilia Romagna region. In this area of 16 million people, the coronavirus’s European epicenter, where the number of cases has been rising rapidly, Italy banned all public gatherings—no weddings, funerals, concerts, sporting events, discos, bingo games, video arcades, or Mass—until April 3. While trains and planes are still operational, and running on time, the government is forbidding people from leaving unless absolutely necessary."
The U.S. Isn’t Ready for What’s About to Happen
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/us-isnt-ready-whats-about-happen/607636/
"Trump’s initial impulse to downplay the risk, at least until the stock market took note, wasn’t just fanciful; it was dangerous. He has consistently minimized the number of sick, blamed Barack Obama’s administration for a shortage of test kits, and publicly mused about the potential of a vaccine being found quickly. The American response to the new disease should be based on something more than hunches and magical thinking. The whole time, people like me have been dutifully advising friends, family, and everyone else to take prudent precautions and avoid panicking. That’s still good advice, because any measures that slow the spread of the disease and lower the death rate could save thousands of lives. But Americans should also understand that even the best preparation humanly possibly wouldn’t be perfect—and that what the United States has done so far falls far short of that. Especially at this point, even a more vigorous response will not preclude a lot of people from getting sick. Preventing all infections is no longer a possibility, and the measure of success is how much public-health authorities can reduce the number of people who die or fall seriously ill."
"Trump’s initial impulse to downplay the risk, at least until the stock market took note, wasn’t just fanciful; it was dangerous. He has consistently minimized the number of sick, blamed Barack Obama’s administration for a shortage of test kits, and publicly mused about the potential of a vaccine being found quickly. The American response to the new disease should be based on something more than hunches and magical thinking. The whole time, people like me have been dutifully advising friends, family, and everyone else to take prudent precautions and avoid panicking. That’s still good advice, because any measures that slow the spread of the disease and lower the death rate could save thousands of lives. But Americans should also understand that even the best preparation humanly possibly wouldn’t be perfect—and that what the United States has done so far falls far short of that. Especially at this point, even a more vigorous response will not preclude a lot of people from getting sick. Preventing all infections is no longer a possibility, and the measure of success is how much public-health authorities can reduce the number of people who die or fall seriously ill."
Trump Plays Golf While Coronavirus Cases Surge
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/trump-plays-golf-coronavirus-cases-surge.html
"Around the world, leaders and health authorities were struggling to try to get a handle on the rapidly spreading coronavirus. But in the United States, President Donald Trump seems to have thought it would be a great time to hit the links with professional baseball players. On Sunday, the commander in chief played golf with current and former Washington Nationals players at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach."
"Around the world, leaders and health authorities were struggling to try to get a handle on the rapidly spreading coronavirus. But in the United States, President Donald Trump seems to have thought it would be a great time to hit the links with professional baseball players. On Sunday, the commander in chief played golf with current and former Washington Nationals players at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach."
Ignore Everything Trump Says About Coronavirus
https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/coronavirus-advice-trump-fox-news-962594/
"Trump clearly has no idea what he’s talking about, and every American would be wise to categorically dismiss anything that comes out of his mouth regarding the coronavirus. He’s only concerned with it so far as it will affect his ability to win reelection this fall, and he will do or say anything to ensure it doesn’t." The president told Sean Hannity that people are getting over the virus by “sitting around” and “going to work”
"Trump clearly has no idea what he’s talking about, and every American would be wise to categorically dismiss anything that comes out of his mouth regarding the coronavirus. He’s only concerned with it so far as it will affect his ability to win reelection this fall, and he will do or say anything to ensure it doesn’t." The president told Sean Hannity that people are getting over the virus by “sitting around” and “going to work”
Psst, After You Wash Your Hands, Clean Your Smartphone
https://slate.com/technology/2020/03/coronavirus-clean-phone-wash-hands.html
"While people typically transmit COVID-19 by spewing respiratory droplets with a cough or sneeze, a recent study in the Journal of Hospital Infection found, after swabbing the mobile devices of 250 hospital staff, that coronaviruses can survive on the kinds of smooth glass and plastic found in smartphones for up to nine days. Kenneth Mak, the director of the Singapore Ministry of Health’s medical services, told reporters in February that cleaning phones is an even more important anti-coronavirus measure than wearing face masks. Your phone is, as public health professor Peter Hall put it recently in the Conversation, a “portable petri dish.” Touching an infected surface, or your face, and then a phone is an easy way for the virus to find a home on your screen. The mucus that carries the coronavirus can then dry on your phone, allowing the disease to last longer. A 2019 survey found that people touch their phones 2,617 times per day on average, and experts estimate that the devices generally host 10 times more bacteria than toilet seats, mostly because people don’t commonly clean them as often. Wash your hands! Then wash your phone. “The rule of thumb is that you need to clean it when it’s been exposed to a risk,” says Michael Schmidt, a microbiology and immunology professor at the Medical University of South Carolina. “When you’ve been out in public and you return home, that’s when I would clean the phone to make certain that the phone is safe in your residence, so you don’t have to be washing your hands continuously subsequent to using it.” Apple instructs users to clean iPhones by first unplugging all cables and then rubbing them down with a microfiber cloth and warm soapy water. Google similarly recommends cleaning the backs and sides of Pixels with cleaning wipes or household soap, and to hand-wash the case fabric with mild soap or laundry detergent."
"While people typically transmit COVID-19 by spewing respiratory droplets with a cough or sneeze, a recent study in the Journal of Hospital Infection found, after swabbing the mobile devices of 250 hospital staff, that coronaviruses can survive on the kinds of smooth glass and plastic found in smartphones for up to nine days. Kenneth Mak, the director of the Singapore Ministry of Health’s medical services, told reporters in February that cleaning phones is an even more important anti-coronavirus measure than wearing face masks. Your phone is, as public health professor Peter Hall put it recently in the Conversation, a “portable petri dish.” Touching an infected surface, or your face, and then a phone is an easy way for the virus to find a home on your screen. The mucus that carries the coronavirus can then dry on your phone, allowing the disease to last longer. A 2019 survey found that people touch their phones 2,617 times per day on average, and experts estimate that the devices generally host 10 times more bacteria than toilet seats, mostly because people don’t commonly clean them as often. Wash your hands! Then wash your phone. “The rule of thumb is that you need to clean it when it’s been exposed to a risk,” says Michael Schmidt, a microbiology and immunology professor at the Medical University of South Carolina. “When you’ve been out in public and you return home, that’s when I would clean the phone to make certain that the phone is safe in your residence, so you don’t have to be washing your hands continuously subsequent to using it.” Apple instructs users to clean iPhones by first unplugging all cables and then rubbing them down with a microfiber cloth and warm soapy water. Google similarly recommends cleaning the backs and sides of Pixels with cleaning wipes or household soap, and to hand-wash the case fabric with mild soap or laundry detergent."
Trump used his Fox News town hall to again mislead Americans about coronavirus
https://www.vox.com/2020/3/6/21167675/trump-fox-news-town-hall-coronavirus-health-care
"One night after an interview with Sean Hannity in which he cited a “hunch” to make a case that the coronavirus mortality rate is actually far lower than the one identified by the World Health Organization (WHO), President Donald Trump was back on Fox News Thursday night once again misleading people about the public health crisis caused by the virus."
"One night after an interview with Sean Hannity in which he cited a “hunch” to make a case that the coronavirus mortality rate is actually far lower than the one identified by the World Health Organization (WHO), President Donald Trump was back on Fox News Thursday night once again misleading people about the public health crisis caused by the virus."
Trump Org charged taxpayers eight times more for Secret Service stays than it claimed: documents
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/06/trump-org-charged-taxpayers-eight-times-more-for-secret-service-stays-than-it-claimed-documents/
"The report found that taxpayers spent more than $471,000 on Trump properties, but the new receipts show that the Trump Organization charged Secret Service an additional $157,000 since 2017, bringing the total to more than $628,000."
"The report found that taxpayers spent more than $471,000 on Trump properties, but the new receipts show that the Trump Organization charged Secret Service an additional $157,000 since 2017, bringing the total to more than $628,000."
Under President Trump, income growth has slowed across the U.S.
https://www.newsweek.com/income-growth-slowed-across-us-under-donald-trump-1488871
"New analysis of government data shows that, since Donald Trump took office, inflation-adjusted income growth has slowed significantly across the U.S. All but two states saw a decline in growth of real median household income under Trump – including Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Florida, four states widely regarded as the key electoral battlegrounds that will likely determine the 2020 presidential election. Middle-class incomes grew at a rate of 2.7 percent from 2016 through 2018, compared to a 5.8 percent growth rate from 2014 through 2016 when accounting for inflation."
"New analysis of government data shows that, since Donald Trump took office, inflation-adjusted income growth has slowed significantly across the U.S. All but two states saw a decline in growth of real median household income under Trump – including Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Florida, four states widely regarded as the key electoral battlegrounds that will likely determine the 2020 presidential election. Middle-class incomes grew at a rate of 2.7 percent from 2016 through 2018, compared to a 5.8 percent growth rate from 2014 through 2016 when accounting for inflation."
As Americans Continue To Get Coronavirus, Trump Shows He Doesn’t Really Care
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coronavirus-trump-doesnt-care_n_5e63ca67c5b68d6164551e41
"At least 17 people in the U.S. have died from the coronavirus and more than 200 people in the country are infected. That number could be much higher, but the CDC has bungled its response and limited the number of diagnostic tests that can be administered. None of these facts stopped the president from patting himself on the back as he bragged about being as smart as the public health experts tasked with handling the situation. “People are really surprised I understand this stuff,” Trump said during a press briefing at the CDC. “Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability.” He doesn’t. In fact, he has disputed a report from World Health Organization scientists that put the death rate from the virus at 3.4%. “I think the 3.4% is really a false number,” Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Wednesday. “Now, and this is just my hunch, and — but based on a lot of conversations with a lot of people that do this.” In a meeting with health experts on Monday, Trump asked why doctors don’t just administer the flu vaccine to combat the virus. “But the same vaccine could not work?” he said. “You take a solid flu vaccine — you don’t think that would have an impact or much of an impact on corona?” It would not have an impact, the experts told him. During Friday’s visit to the CDC, Trump bragged about having “beautiful” coronavirus testing kits, and bizarrely claimed they were as “perfect” as the phone call that got him impeached. And when asked about infected passengers on a cruise ship anchored near San Francisco, Trump strongly indicated that he cares about bad PR — in the form of a higher number of infected Americans — above all else."
"At least 17 people in the U.S. have died from the coronavirus and more than 200 people in the country are infected. That number could be much higher, but the CDC has bungled its response and limited the number of diagnostic tests that can be administered. None of these facts stopped the president from patting himself on the back as he bragged about being as smart as the public health experts tasked with handling the situation. “People are really surprised I understand this stuff,” Trump said during a press briefing at the CDC. “Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability.” He doesn’t. In fact, he has disputed a report from World Health Organization scientists that put the death rate from the virus at 3.4%. “I think the 3.4% is really a false number,” Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Wednesday. “Now, and this is just my hunch, and — but based on a lot of conversations with a lot of people that do this.” In a meeting with health experts on Monday, Trump asked why doctors don’t just administer the flu vaccine to combat the virus. “But the same vaccine could not work?” he said. “You take a solid flu vaccine — you don’t think that would have an impact or much of an impact on corona?” It would not have an impact, the experts told him. During Friday’s visit to the CDC, Trump bragged about having “beautiful” coronavirus testing kits, and bizarrely claimed they were as “perfect” as the phone call that got him impeached. And when asked about infected passengers on a cruise ship anchored near San Francisco, Trump strongly indicated that he cares about bad PR — in the form of a higher number of infected Americans — above all else."
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