Trump administration incompetence with regards to coronavirus -- need more examples!

[Aspenglow]

@septimus

<snip>

There, there. We need our federal agencies to make profits. How else can we afford more tax cuts for the rich?

I must have missed it. When did they start giving a rat’s patootie about what we can afford?

(I do know you’re teasing. )

[Savannah]

The cruelty is the point.

The Cruelty Is the Point

[joebuck20]

I think this may be the one thing that finally turns a few of Trump’s less nuttier supporters against him.

As long as the economy was humming along at a nice clip, they could handwave away a lot of his antics and corruption. The Ukraine stuff and all the malfeasance revealed during the impeachment investigation? Just a witchhunt by Democrats as far they’re concerned. Putting kids in cages? A lot of his supporters are all for these sorts of hardline tactics, so that was never really going to hurt him politically.

But when they see loved ones starting to get sick, and are continuing to be fed bucketful after bucketful of obvious lies, that could cause them to think, “You know what? Maybe this guy really is full of shit.”

[asahi]

@RTFirefly

The House passed a bill that provides for:

• free coronavirus testing
• paid emergency medical leave
• extended unemployment insurance
• food assistance
• help for health care workers.

The Senate is about to go on recess until March 23. According to McConnell ally Lamar Alexander, “The Senate will act when we come back and we have a clearer idea of what extra steps we need to take.” Not like there’s any urgency or anything.

Just when you think the GOP can’t possibly be any worse…

But beyond the heartlessness of it all, I think they’re setting themselves up to be swept out of congress if this thing gets worse, and all signs are that it will.

[asahi]

According to a Politico writer (as reported by Business Insider), Trump has been resistant to testing in part because he wants an artificially low count:

Trump didn't push for more coronavirus testing because he was concerned that...

I’m careful to put too much stock in reports based on anonymous sources, but this story is plausible. It also explains why much of the federal workforce continues to work despite the growing risks of corona. He knows sending them home would shake and rattle markets even further.

[Snowboarder_Bo]

@Skywatcher

Completely empty stands at NASCAR events over at least the next couple of weeks might put a dent in that.

The stands have been mostly empty for years now; no one would notice any difference. Besides, they just suspended the season.

[Snowboarder_Bo]

@asahi

According to a Politico writer (as reported by Business Insider), Trump has been resistant to testing in part because he wants an artificially low count:

Trump Feared High Coronavirus Cases Would Dent Reelection, Report Says

I’m careful to put too much stock in reports based on anonymous sources, but this story is plausible.

It’s patently obvious that is what is happening: none diagnosed=none exist.

[Joey_P]

@joebuck20

I think this may be the one thing that finally turns a few of Trump’s less nuttier supporters against him.

As long as the economy was humming along at a nice clip, they could handwave away a lot of his antics and corruption. The Ukraine stuff and all the malfeasance revealed during the impeachment investigation? Just a witchhunt by Democrats as far they’re concerned. Putting kids in cages? A lot of his supporters are all for these sorts of hardline tactics, so that was never really going to hurt him politically.

But when they see loved ones starting to get sick, and are continuing to be fed bucketful after bucketful of obvious lies, that could cause them to think, “You know what? Maybe this guy really is full of shit.”

If you believe the lies then you’re not going to work on the assumption that they’re lies. If you believe that there’s only 2000 cases in coronavirus and your mom dies of it, you’ll assume it’s a fluke. If you assume that’s a lie and maybe we have closer to 30,000 cases and your mom dies, you’ll be angry that the administration is lying.
However, in either case, if the stock market is even close to recovering, say DJ at 28,000ish, people aren’t going to think about it. Or worse, Trump will spin it into a success for himself. He didn’t ruin it, he fixed it. Also, keep in mind, as long as it’s over 20,000, he’ll still take responsibility for it going up while he’s been in office.

[GreenWyvern]

From the Washington Post:

I ran the White House pandemic office. Trump closed it.

It’s unclear whether the decision to disband the directorate, which was made in May 2018, after John Bolton became national security adviser, was a tactical move to downgrade the issue or whether it was part of the White House’s interest in simplifying and shrinking the National Security Council staff. Either way, it left an unclear structure and strategy for coordinating pandemic preparedness and response. Experts outside government and on Capitol Hill called for the office’s reinstatement at the time.

Its absence now is all too evident. In his remarks Wednesday night, the president talked about travel bans and the resilience of the U.S. economy but made little specific mention of the public health crisis unfolding across America — exactly the kind of detail a dedicated NSC pandemics infrastructure would have pushed to address. A directorate within the White House would have been responsible for coordinating the efforts of multiple federal agencies to make sure the government was backstopping testing capacity, devising approaches to manufacture and avoid shortages of personal protective equipment, strengthening U.S. lab capacity to process covid-19 tests, and expanding the health-care workforce.

The office would galvanize resources to coordinate a robust and seamless domestic and global response. It would identify needs among state and local officials, and advise and facilitate regular, focused communication from federal health and scientific experts to provide states and the public with fact-based tools to minimize the virus’s spread. The White House is uniquely positioned to take into account broader U.S. and global security considerations associated with health emergencies, including their impact on deployed citizens, troops and regional economies, as well as peace and stability. A White House office would have been able to elevate urgent issues fast, so they didn’t linger or devolve to inaction, as with coronavirus testing in the United States. It would be in charge of sharing information and coordinating our public health and humanitarian response with partners and allies.

[RioRico]

Beside blaming Obama for COVID, can this POTUS also blame his predecessor for the MidEast plague of locusts?