Trump VS COVID-19 Threat

[lpetrich]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "Every minute, hour, & day that Fed action is delayed on Coronavirus puts lives at risk.
The House has been hammering away at a coronavirus relief package. We just called in every member to vote on & pass a deal at almost 1am.
#WheresMitch McConnell?
Taking the weekend off." / Twitter
then
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "We have a bipartisan package that passed the House tonight & has been agreed to by the White House.
McConnell needs to bring the Senate back now and call a vote. I don’t care if it’s a Saturday. COVID doubling rate means every 24 hours represents a critical window. #WheresMitch?" / Twitter

What was just passed in the House:
H.R.6201 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Families First Coronavirus Response Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress - "This bill responds to the coronavirus outbreak by providing paid sick leave and free coronavirus testing, expanding food assistance and unemployment benefits, and requiring employers to provide additional protections for health care workers."

The vote on it:
Final Vote Results for Roll Call 102

• Yes: Dem 223, Rep 140 = 363
• No: Rep 40 = 40
• Present: Ind 1 = 1
• Absent: Dem 9, Rep 17 = 26

An earlier bill: H.R.6074 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress - "This bill provides $8.3 billion in emergency funding for federal agencies to respond to the coronavirus outbreak."

House vote:

• Yes: Dem 222, Rep 192, Ind 1 = 415
• No: Rep 2 = 2
• Present:
• Absent: Dem 10, Rep 3 = 13

Senate vote:

• Yes: Dem 44, Rep 51, Ind 1 = 96
• No: Rep 1 = 1
• Present:
• Absent: Dem 1, Rep 1, Ind 1 = 3

 

[hurtinbuckaroo]

View attachment 26560

Weren't flu deaths in the USA unusually low that year (2009)?

 

[lpetrich]

Trump Coronavirus Oval Office Speech on Europe Travel Ban Sparks ‘Total Chaos’ in His Own Administration - "U.S. officials overseas didn’t even know if they were allowed home and got little clarity from the president’s team after his new policy was unveiled."

President Donald Trump’s Oval Office address Wednesday evening was supposed to calm concerns about the spread of the coronavirus. Instead, it sparked panic and confusion. Not just among the markets, U.S. travelers, and international leaders but within his own administration as well.

...
“It is just total chaos,” said one official currently abroad, adding that they did not know if they would have to return to the U.S. immediately or if they would need to quarantine for two weeks upon arriving. Diplomats and other U.S. staff overseas did not know if they’d be able to even visit their families back in the States, and they frantically searched for answers that weren’t immediately available from Foggy Bottom or the West Wing.

...
“We are wasting time playing mop-up on something we absolutely should not have to do right now,” said a senior Trump administration official working on the communications clean-up since Wednesday evening. “And it goes without say[ing] that we aren’t allowed to admit that any of it is the fault of the president.”

Why don't they go public about that? If enough officials do so, then Trump won't be able to fire them all.

Gaetz Voted Against Florida Paid Sick Leave. He’s Using It in Congress.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., decided to self-quarantine this week after coming in contact with an individual who tested positive for a novel coronavirus, which causes the disease Covid-19, at the Conservative Political Action Conference late last month.

But Gaetz’s decision to take time away from his job at Congress without the fear of losing pay or being fired is a right few Americans share. In fact, Gaetz voted to prohibit Florida residents from sharing that right.

Gaetz’s office did not respond to a request for comment. The lawmaker has since tested negative for the SARS-CoV-2 virus but is continuing to self-quarantine “in an abundance of caution.” Members of Congress get paid a salary of $174,000 or more no matter what. They do not have to vote or be present in D.C., and Gaetz has missed votes all week.

 

[Elixir]

We have seen him hesitate to take the necessary steps on many occasions, and we have watched as he squandered precious time with denial and obfuscation while many Americans became ill and some died. The president took a difficult but manageable situation and made it worse through neglect, indifference, and selfishness. The president does not serve the public interest and he never intended to do that. He sees public office simply as an opportunity for his own enrichment and aggrandizement, so when the test came in the form of this outbreak he was bound to fail it because his priority has always been to serve himself. The writing has been on the wall for a long time, but many Americans didn’t want to see it.

[link]

I've gotten so used to Trump's self-serving MO that it is just background noise any more. What is really REALLY disgusting is the spectacle of his fawning toadies, effusively praising his incompetence, even as his failures are killing scores of Americans - and he claims zero responsibility.
I don't think the people at "TheAmericanConservative" realize the lengths to which this despot will go to retain power. The writing may be on the wall, but Trump is fucking illiterate.

 

[lpetrich]

As to Mitch McConnell, he dismissed the Senate and went off to some event involving Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. He should be back in action on Monday, however.

#WheresMitch is now trending on Twitter.

 

[ZiprHead]

Not true,
@realDonaldTrump
. I wrote to you more than 600 days ago demanding answers after you fired the entire White House pandemic team.

Senator Sherrod Brown's Tweet of the letter.

 

[ZiprHead]

“No, I Don’t Take Responsibility at All”

This is a historic moment. The first time Mango Unchained told the truth.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Trump alleges he was tested last night. Responded results available in ‘I wasn’t told. a day or two.’

So Trump either has it or is lying about the test.

 

[ZiprHead]

The real facts of Obama's response to the swine flu.

On April 15, 2009, the first infection was identified in California, according to the CDC, and less than two weeks later, on April 26, 2009, the Obama administration declared a public health emergency. The day before, on April 25, the World Health Organization had declared a public health emergency.

Dr. Richard Besser, then-acting director of the CDC, confirmed to the press on the day of the U.S. declaration that there were 20 cases of H1N1 in the U.S., and that “all of the individuals in this country who have been identified as cases have recovered.”

The same day — April 26 — the CDC began releasing antiviral drugs to treat the H1N1 flu, and two days later, the FDA approved a new CDC test for the disease, according to a CDC timeline on the pandemic.

On April 30, 2009, two days after the public health emergency declaration, Obama formally asked Congress for $1.5 billion to fight the outbreak, and later asked for nearly $9 billion, according a September 2009 Congressional Research Service report. On June 26, 2009, Obama signed Congress’ supplemental appropriation bill that included $7.7 billion for the outbreak.

The U.S. public health emergency was renewed twice — on July 24, 2009, and Oct. 1, 2009.

The WHO declared H1N1 a pandemic on June 11, 2009. Obama declared a national emergency related to the pandemic on Oct. 24, 2009. At the time, the CDC director, Dr. Thomas Frieden, had said millions of people had been infected in the U.S. and more than 1,000 had died. Also about 11.3 million doses of H1N1 vaccine had been distributed, he said.

A New York Times article from January 2010 said that while some mistakes were made, a variety of experts thought the administration had generally handled things well.

William Schaffner of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine told the Times that officials deserved “at least a B-plus,” while Mount Sinai virologist Peter Palese called the overall response “excellent.”

Trump Misleads on Polls Again
In yet another tweet, Trump again misleadingly cited poll information to claim he has “78%” approval of his administration’s response to the new coronavirus outbreak.

He claimed this was “the highest on record,” while Biden’s approval rating for the response to the H1N1 outbreak “was lowest.” Even according to a dated poll, the H1N1 approval wasn’t the lowest.

As we’ve written before when the president cited Gallup, a poll by the company, taken Feb. 3-16 and released Feb. 20, before anyone had died from COVID-19 in this country, found that 77% of Americans were very or somewhat confident that the government would be able to handle an outbreak of new coronavirus. That was a higher percentage than American confidence in previous administrations’ ability to deal with Zika, Ebola, swine flu and bird flu, according to an average of polls. But the confidence in swine flu was the second highest — at 67% — not the “lowest,” as Trump claimed.

And as the number of cases and deaths have grown, public confidence in the Trump administration has decreased, according to several polls. A Quinnipiac poll, taken March 5-8 and released March 9, found 43% of registered voters said they approved of the way Trump is handling the outbreak response.

With the swine flu, however, at least two polls showed higher approval of the Obama administration (the polls didn’t ask about Biden). A Washington Post-ABC News poll taken in October 2009 found 69% of adults were confident in the federal government’s ability to respond to an outbreak. A CNN poll released in early November 2009 found 57% approved of Obama’s response.

Halfie, you really need to stop listening to dumber Carlson and Fox news. They are outright lying to you.

 

[Copernicus]

As to Mitch McConnell, he dismissed the Senate and went off to some event involving Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. He should be back in inaction on Monday, however.

#WheresMitch is now trending on Twitter.

FIFY

 

[ZiprHead]

 

[lpetrich]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "To everyone in NYC but ESPECIALLY healthy people & people under 40 (bc from what I’m observing that’s who needs to hear this again):
PLEASE stop crowding bars, restaurants, and public spaces right now. Eat your meals at home.
If you are healthy, you could be spreading COVID." / Twitter

Buying takeout meals is a good way to go. Like a lot of pizza and Chinese food.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "What does “crowded” mean? If you can’t stay 6ft away from other people, it’s too close. In general, when going outside try to stay at least 6 feet away from others as much as you possibly can." / Twitter

Or in metric units, 2 meters.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "The need for social distancing from restaurants only underscores the need for relief for tipped workers, freelancers, shift workers, etc.
Tax credits & unemployment insurance does not help many of these workers - that’s a huge segment of our economy.
We need emergency UBI, now." / Twitter

Something available right away.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "We need real paid sick leave,
right now,
for every worker,
no exceptions." / Twitter

It might have to be subsidized in some way, however.

 

[lpetrich]

Ben Phillips on Twitter: "Graphs are useful but to really get what that rising curve is, have a look at the obituaries page of this Bergamo daily newspaper, comparing one from February with one from now https://t.co/78mgZseyVt" / Twitter - increase in obituaries by a factor of 2.

The first wave of coronavirus-related layoffs has started - The Washington Post
then
The Washington Post on Twitter: "The first U.S. layoffs from the coronavirus are here.
Job losses have begun in ports, bakeries and travel agencies. Economists worry more layoffs are coming in the next few weeks as many businesses see plummeting sales. https://t.co/Jf00rrLkV2" / Twitter
then
Bernie Sanders on Twitter: "Short-term: we must provide emergency unemployment assistance and include workers who depend on tips, gig workers, domestic workers and independent contractors.
Long-term: we need Medicare for All so your health insurance is not tied to your job. https://t.co/l7IzEKODFP" / Twitter
then
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Twitter: "Presidential. https://t.co/AdcZooY3fw" / Twitter

I think that the key here is decoupling medical insurance from employment. That can be done with private insurance, as many countries do. Yes, it's possible to get universal coverage with private insurers -- that's what Germany does, for instance.

 

[lpetrich]

Talib Visram on Twitter: "Whether you call it an economic stimulus or a mini UBI, this recession-fighting measure has been proposed by Obama-era economists, @AOC, and @AndrewYang. My story on how free money may be our best bet: https://t.co/fc35h4CjDr" / Twitter
noting
Combat recession with cash for everyone to boost the economy - "Whether you call it free money, an economic stimulus, or a mini universal basic income, it could be the best recession-fighting measure we have."

The novel coronavirus has been a boon to a handful of very specific businesses, including those producing disinfectant wipes, canned goods, and telecommunication apps. But, as social distancing and self-quarantining become the norm, the economy is taking a deep hit, as restaurants, hotels, airlines, theaters, and a host of other industries find themselves suddenly without customers, and workers are being left without tips, or furloughed, or simply laid off. The stock market’s continuing tumbles—exacerbated by the president’s performance—is prompting fears of a looming recession. Bloomberg News’ recession predictor now places the odds at 53%.

Economists and lawmakers are debating various techniques for preparing to lessen the blow of a downturn, but one is swiftly gaining traction: lump-sum cash payouts to every citizen. It’s been touted by leading macroeconomists, and by an Obama economic advisor, who are pitching it as the optimum way to infuse life into a slowing economy by encouraging spending, which traditionally drops during recessions because of declining incomes. It would also give out-of-work workers a way to pay their bills (though cities are starting to offer policy fixes like moratoriums on evictions to help these issues as well).

Tax breaks are not very effective, since those with low incomes don't pay much in taxes.

Lump cash sums, on the other hand, ensure consistent payouts, and this kind of fiscal intervention is more effective than broader monetary policy. It’s also just more straightforward for regular folks to understand than complex monetary policy, so people feel like they’re being helped directly.

...
If the cash giveaway concept is producing an odd feeling of déjà-vu, perhaps it just sounds similar to the core of Andrew Yang’s presidential campaign: universal basic income. Yang’s signature policy was to deploy $1,000 a month, no questions asked, as a supplementary income (but in lieu of government benefits) for all adults, on a permanent basis. But, with a recession on the horizon, Yang has taken to Twitter to start a trending topic: #UBIStimulus, tweaking his signature policy into temporary measure to boost the economy.

Then this one: How the climate fight could mimic the coronavirus fight

 

[TSwizzle]

Great news, president Trump does not have coronavirus despite having close proximity to people who had the virus.

 

[Half-Life]

The real facts of Obama's response to the swine flu.

Trump Misleads on Polls Again
In yet another tweet, Trump again misleadingly cited poll information to claim he has “78%” approval of his administration’s response to the new coronavirus outbreak.

He claimed this was “the highest on record,” while Biden’s approval rating for the response to the H1N1 outbreak “was lowest.” Even according to a dated poll, the H1N1 approval wasn’t the lowest.

As we’ve written before when the president cited Gallup, a poll by the company, taken Feb. 3-16 and released Feb. 20, before anyone had died from COVID-19 in this country, found that 77% of Americans were very or somewhat confident that the government would be able to handle an outbreak of new coronavirus. That was a higher percentage than American confidence in previous administrations’ ability to deal with Zika, Ebola, swine flu and bird flu, according to an average of polls. But the confidence in swine flu was the second highest — at 67% — not the “lowest,” as Trump claimed.

And as the number of cases and deaths have grown, public confidence in the Trump administration has decreased, according to several polls. A Quinnipiac poll, taken March 5-8 and released March 9, found 43% of registered voters said they approved of the way Trump is handling the outbreak response.

With the swine flu, however, at least two polls showed higher approval of the Obama administration (the polls didn’t ask about Biden). A Washington Post-ABC News poll taken in October 2009 found 69% of adults were confident in the federal government’s ability to respond to an outbreak. A CNN poll released in early November 2009 found 57% approved of Obama’s response.

Halfie, you really need to stop listening to dumber Carlson and Fox news. They are outright lying to you.

It was also a lot easier to treat the Swine Flu than the coronavirus. You could have corona and not even know it and you could pass it on to someone else. This would be like blaming the sitting President when lung cancer started out and asking, "Why is there no vaccine yet Mr. President?"

 

[Half-Life]

You mean Barry, the guy that created the United States Pandemic Response system that Bonespurs disbanded in 2018?

Or the leadership of Bonespurs when he was warned about this three month ago and did nothing for two months? Or Mango Unchained who refused to accept WHO COVID-19 test kits and letting the disease spread unfettered for months, denying it was a problem and even claiming it was a hoax? Or the Golfer-in-Chief who enacted a travel ban, except for countries that have Trump golf resorts? The guy that insisted the experts were wrong and he was right. How about the guy that said three weeks ago “The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA,” ? Was he lying then or is he lying now?

Not to mention military bases are basically quarantined areas by their very nature. Access is always extremely limited. Relatively there were very few cases of swine flu amongst the military in 2009. Only three members of the military died from H1N1, H3N2. This virus however is far more contagious and deadly than the swine flu and quarantining bases is appropriate.

Hannity was just showing media clips of Obama's presidency during rhe Swine Flu. Obama declared a state of emergency and the media praised him for it. Trump does the same thing AND MORE, and the media criticizes him for it. "Just shows how sick the media has gotten," Hannity said. "They tried to get him on Russia Russia Ukraine Ukraine impeach impeach and now it's corona corona!," added Hannity.

Trump just declared the state of emergency today. Can you point to a media outlet critical of him for doing so?

Trump never said the virus was a hoax. He said the Democrats criticism of his response is their new hoax, like the Ukraine hoax.

Besides, the only options are you either believe we're all gonna die and this is a million times worse than climate change, or you believe it's going to blow over and everything will be OK. I pick the latter. The media are the ones who blow everything out of proportion. We were all supposed to die from the swine flu and the ebola crisis of 2014, too.

 

[Half-Life]

Great news, president Trump does not have coronavirus despite having close proximity to people who had the virus.

Even if you hate the guy like a lot of people on this forum, you got to admit that it seems like nothing can bring this man down.

 

[Patooka]

You mean Barry, the guy that created the United States Pandemic Response system that Bonespurs disbanded in 2018?

Or the leadership of Bonespurs when he was warned about this three month ago and did nothing for two months? Or Mango Unchained who refused to accept WHO COVID-19 test kits and letting the disease spread unfettered for months, denying it was a problem and even claiming it was a hoax? Or the Golfer-in-Chief who enacted a travel ban, except for countries that have Trump golf resorts? The guy that insisted the experts were wrong and he was right. How about the guy that said three weeks ago “The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA,” ? Was he lying then or is he lying now?

Not to mention military bases are basically quarantined areas by their very nature. Access is always extremely limited. Relatively there were very few cases of swine flu amongst the military in 2009. Only three members of the military died from H1N1, H3N2. This virus however is far more contagious and deadly than the swine flu and quarantining bases is appropriate.

Hannity was just showing media clips of Obama's presidency during rhe Swine Flu. Obama declared a state of emergency and the media praised him for it. Trump does the same thing AND MORE, and the media criticizes him for it. "Just shows how sick the media has gotten," Hannity said. "They tried to get him on Russia Russia Ukraine Ukraine impeach impeach and now it's corona corona!," added Hannity.

Trump just declared the state of emergency today. Can you point to a media outlet critical of him for doing so?

Trump never said the virus was a hoax. He said the Democrats criticism of his response is their new hoax, like the Ukraine hoax.

It's adorable you think Trump is capable of nuance. Incidentally, why do you think Trump deserves a pass on his reaction to the pandemic?

 

[Half-Life]

Trump never said the virus was a hoax. He said the Democrats criticism of his response is their new hoax, like the Ukraine hoax.

It's adorable you think Trump is capable of nuance. Incidentally, why do you think Trump deserves a pass on his reaction to the pandemic?

Because some things are hard to predict. People thought we would all die from Ebola and Swine Flu. It was contained. Now, people think we're all gonna die from corona. It will blow over. However, let's suppose it doesn't blow over. Then that just means it's too hard to find a way to cure it, just like curing lung cancer or dementia. Can't blame Trump if even the world's best doctors and scientists are stumped. Maybe you can say, "The doctors need more funding and research!" How's that working out for a lung cancer vaccine after multiple decades of round the clock research?