A few days ago, I started telling people I know that the coronavirus crisis will begin to overwhelm us in about three weeks’ time. I based that on looking at where other countries are, particularly Italy, and then I just projected forward knowing that we haven’t done enough to prevent or prepare for the worst. The New York Times editorial board put it this way:
On Tuesday, Mr. Trump said he’d “love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter,” which falls this year on April 12. Who wouldn’t? But wishing will not make it so. This crisis has not turned a corner — it hasn’t even hit yet.
I’d love to spend a bunch of time arguing with the president about the advisability of people showing up for Easter services, but events will make the case for me. This reality will not bend to fit Trump’s fantasies.
Speaking of fantasies, that pretty well describes the rest of the editorial board’s piece, because it is basically a long exhortation for the president to do things he will never proactively and voluntarily do.
President Trump needs to call for a two-week shelter-in-place order, now, as part of a coherent national strategy for the coronavirus to protect Americans and their livelihoods.
That will not happen.
We are not suggesting that Mr. Trump has the authority to order a national lockdown, much less advocating that he attempt to enforce one. Instead, we are urging him to use the bully pulpit to put pressure on, and provide political cover for, governors to take the hard steps that are needed.
The opposite of that is happening.
He should announce that, within 24 hours, all nonessential businesses should be shut and residents directed to remain in their homes except for vital trips out, such as to obtain food or medical care.
The president could not have been more clear that he is opposed to this.
Lines of authority and policy aims need to be clarified within the White House. Vice President Mike Pence is the official crisis czar, but Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, has his own response team working on, among other things, outreach to the private sector. Certain senior aides, with business leaders whispering in their ears, are at odds with some health advisers about what restrictions are needed and how heavy the government’s hand should be…
…Federalism is integral to American government, but the administration needs to get serious about running a coordinated national response.
Why, at this point, anyone would expect this administration to be capable of coordinating a response is beyond me. This will simply never happen as long as Trump remains president. And that’s why this is delusional:
This editorial board is reluctant to grant any White House more executive power, much less this one, given its track record. But in this case, there is no one else to coordinate at the national level.
There is not “no one else” to coordinate at the national level, there is no one who can do this period. The only solution, and it’s glaringly obvious, is to remove Trump from office now and put our faith in Mike Pence to at least follow the direction of the experts he’s ostensibly organizing.
We’re past the point of there being any profit in telling Trump what he should do. He will not do it, and will most often make things a hundred times worse. That’s why this is a ridiculous waste of breath:
It’s time to put an end to the free-form daily task force briefings featuring the president, the vice president and a rotating cast of other officials. They are a poor use of time for most of the participants and, worse, have repeatedly served up confusing and even false information. The president should tap a respected figure, preferably someone apolitical and with experience in crisis management, to serve as the point person for these briefings. When developments merit, other officials can be brought in to address specific topics.
That’s the last thing on Earth that will ever happen.
If the Editorial Board wants the president to face reality they should set an example by facing reality themselves. There is only one solution here that can prevent or at least mitigate total disaster, and that’s if the Republicans can be convinced that they don’t want two million deaths on their conscience because they refused to do what was necessary while there was still time for it to matter.
When it comes to the virus, we are pretty much now 50 separate little countries within a common geographic framework, whose responses to this will be largely made independently of the delusional lunatic ravings coming out of the daily 2 hour ego masturbation-fest that goes on in the White House pressroom. We are largely on our own to do what we can about surviving this. We are in competition with each other for life saving resources. We will all ride the same economic wave, however, and unfortunately the crazy man and his people are in charge of much of that aspect.
All in all, one could not script a worse set of circumstances to virtually guarantee the most destructive possible outcome, when all is said and done.
His poll numbers are going up and his unfavorable numbers are going down. More than half the country seems to think he’s doing a good job handling the virus. Why would he stop doing what he’s doing? His rating are better. That’s all that counts.
It’s inevitable that Presidential approval will go up in a national crisis. But let’s have perspective. GW Bush’s approval went up 40 points. Jimmy Carter’s went up 30 points. Trumps approval has gone up 2 points. And any increased approval will not be maintained if the president doesn’t manage to address the problem credibly. Carter lost in a landslide.
Yep. The reality is that Trump’s boost is incredibly anemic for a leader in a time of national crisis, because he is not a leader for more than half the country and never could be because we know he lies constantly..
The Democrats have no response except apparently passing a bill written by Trump’s WH flunkies and Yertle the Turtle. Why would Democrats vote for it, even if a few shitty scraps were tossed in? Especially since Yertle the Turtle will adjourn the Senate for a month? Have you seen Boeing’s stock price the past two days? Isn’t that indicative of a corporate giveaway?
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One might recall that is wasn’t very long ago that 20 Republican Senators could have done the right thing and, in a matter of a few minutes without telling anyone but their little group, they could have removed Trump from office. As terrible as Pence is, he is far better than Trump at this moment.
They would look like geniuses now. Hero’s of the whelm, that were shown to be prescient. Now….they pay the price, maybe with their lives.
The Karma is strong with them.
I view this sort of piece, not as giving advice, but defining how wanting the President’s performance has been.
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The NYT won’t be listened to by Republicans when they disagree with Agent Orange, and used as a cudgel when they do happen to agree. This is pointing out how weak his leadership has been. Telling governors they are on their own for procuring necessary medical equipment quickly when he has the power to make it a lot faster? This isn’t a made-up “crisis” like on the apprentice.
But, he’s “stickin’ it to the libs” so down this country sinks into illness.
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