Daily Briefing of the Coronavirus Task Force

Discussion in 'Politics' started by toughcoins, Mar 21, 2020.

  1. toughcoins

    toughcoins Rarely is the liberal viewpoint tainted by realism

    For the first time today, I saw the Daily Briefing of the Coronavirus Task Force.

    Contrary to what liberals would have you believe, this president and his administration really get it.

    They’ve appealed to private industry and gained agreement to augment existing supplies and production with new manufacturing capacity from companies in unrelated industries, not only to make surgical masks, but also to manufacture ventilators and even to make sanitizer.

    They’ve championed the investigation and testing of anti-malarial drugs to suppress COVID-19 while patients receive other drugs to kill it off.

    They’ve suspended student loan payments until the crisis ends.

    They are blocking mortgage companies from foreclosing on delinquent mortgages until the crisis ends.

    They’ve prohibited publicly held companies from using cash to buy back their stock at depressed prices, when that cash can be used to assist their burdened employees instead.

    Doubtless, I’ve missed more, but my point is made . . . This president may not talk the way we want, and when we want, but he gets the job done better than any president we’ve seen in our lifetimes.

    KUDOS Mr. President!
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2020
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  2. Mopar Dude

    Mopar Dude Well-Known Member

    Absolutely. This has been exactly my point all along. The mans substance is in his results. And he gets results. Sadly though, you can bet he will be derided for it by the left. We live in an age that good deeds are not good deed unless they are accomplished by your personal political persuasion.
     
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  3. FryDaddyJr

    FryDaddyJr Well-Known Member

  4. toughcoins

    toughcoins Rarely is the liberal viewpoint tainted by realism


    Once again, you’ve got your facts wrong. The president likened liberal efforts to criticize his handling of the Coronavirus a hoax, but he did not refer to the virus itself as being a hoax.
     
    Last edited: Mar 21, 2020
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  5. FryDaddyJr

    FryDaddyJr Well-Known Member

    his exact words

    Here are Trump’s exact words on the topic at the South Carolina rally:

    Now the Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus. You know that, right? Coronavirus. They’re politicizing it. We did one of the great jobs. You say, ‘How’s President Trump doing?’ They go, ‘Oh, not good, not good.’ They have no clue. They don’t have any clue. They can’t even count their votes in Iowa, they can’t even count. No they can’t. They can’t count their votes.

    One of my people came up to me and said, ‘Mr. President, they tried to beat you on Russia, Russia, Russia. That didn’t work out too well. They couldn’t do it. They tried the impeachment hoax. That was on a perfect conversation. They tried anything, they tried it over and over, they’ve been doing it since you got in. It’s all turning, they lost, it’s all turning. Think of it. Think of it. And this is their new hoax. But you know, we did something that’s been pretty amazing. We’re 15 people [cases of coronavirus infection] in this massive country. And because of the fact that we went early, we went early, we could have had a lot more than that.
     
  6. FryDaddyJr

    FryDaddyJr Well-Known Member

    A Complete List of Trump’s Attempts to Play Down CoronavirusA Complete List of Trump’s Attempts to Play Down Coronavirus
    He could have taken action. He didn’t.
    President Trump made his first public comments about the coronavirus on Jan. 22, in a television interview from Davos with CNBC’s Joe Kernen. The first American case had been announced the day before, and Kernen asked Trump, “Are there worries about a pandemic at this point?”

    The president responded: “No. Not at all. And we have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It’s going to be just fine.”

    By this point, the seriousness of the virus was becoming clearer. It had spread from China to four other countries. China was starting to take drastic measures and was on the verge of closing off the city of Wuhan.

    In the weeks that followed, Trump faced a series of choices. He could have taken aggressive measures to slow the spread of the virus. He could have insisted that the United States ramp up efforts to produce test kits. He could have emphasized the risks that the virus presented and urged Americans to take precautions if they had reason to believe they were sick. He could have used the powers of the presidency to reduce the number of people who would ultimately get sick.

    Continue reading the main story

    He did none of those things.

    I’ve reviewed all of his public statements and actions on coronavirus over the last two months, and they show a president who put almost no priority on public health. Trump’s priorities were different: Making the virus sound like a minor nuisance. Exaggerating his administration’s response. Blaming foreigners and, anachronistically, the Obama administration. Claiming incorrectly that the situation was improving. Trying to cheer up stock market investors. (It was fitting that his first public comments were from Davos and on CNBC.)

    Now that the severity of the virus is undeniable, Trump is already trying to present an alternate history of the last two months. Below are the facts — a timeline of what the president was saying, alongside statements from public-health experts as well as data on the virus.


    • Thanks for reading The Times.
    Subscribe to The Times

    Late January
    On the same day that Trump was dismissing the risks on CNBC, Tom Frieden, who ran the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for eight years, wrote an op-ed for the health care publication Stat. In it, Frieden warned that the virus would continue spreading. “We need to learn — and fast — about how it spreads,” he wrote.

    It was one of many such warnings from prominent experts in late January. Many focused on the need to expand the capacity to test for the virus. In a Wall Street Journal article titled, “Act Now to Prevent an American Epidemic,” Luciana Borio and Scott Gottlieb — both former Trump administration officials — wrote:

    If public-health authorities don’t interrupt the spread soon, the virus could infect many thousands more around the globe, disrupt air travel, overwhelm health care systems, and, worst of all, claim more lives. The good news: There’s still an opening to prevent a grim outcome. … But authorities can’t act quickly without a test that can diagnose the condition rapidly.

    Trump, however, repeatedly told Americans that there was no reason to worry. On Jan. 24, he tweeted, “It will all work out well.” On Jan. 28, he retweeted a headline from One America News, an outlet with a history of spreading false conspiracy theories: “Johnson & Johnson to create coronavirus vaccine.” On Jan. 30, during a speech in Michigan, he said: “We have it very well under control. We have very little problem in this country at this moment — five. And those people are all recuperating successfully.”

    That same day, the World Health Organization declared coronavirus to be a “public-health emergency of international concern.” It announced 7,818 confirmed cases around the world.
    How Cardi B’s Off-the-Cuff Video Became a Coronavirus Anthem
    Continue reading the main story

    Advertisement

    Continue reading the main story

    Jan. 31
    Trump took his only early, aggressive action against the virus on Jan. 31: He barred most foreigners who had recently visited China from entering the United States. It was a good move.


    But it was only one modest move, not the sweeping solution that Trump portrayed it to be. It didn’t apply to Americans who had been traveling in China, for example. And while it generated some criticism from Democrats, it wasn’t nearly as unpopular as Trump has since suggested. Two days after announcing the policy, Trump went on Fox News and exaggerated the impact in an interview with Sean Hannity.

    “Coronavirus,” Hannity said. “How concerned are you?”

    Trump replied: “Well, we pretty much shut it down coming in from China. We have a tremendous relationship with China, which is a very positive thing. Getting along with China, getting along with Russia, getting along with these countries.”

    By the time of that interview, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases around the world had surged to 14,557, a near doubling over the previous three days.
     
  7. FryDaddyJr

    FryDaddyJr Well-Known Member

    Late February
    Trump seemed largely uninterested in the global virus statistics during this period, but there were other indicators — stock-market indexes — that mattered a lot to him. And by the last week of February, those market indexes were falling.

    The president reacted by adding a new element to his public remarks. He began blaming others.

    He criticized CNN and MSNBC for “panicking markets.” He said at a South Carolina rally — falsely — that “the Democrat policy of open borders” had brought the virus into the country. He lashed out at “Do Nothing Democrat comrades.” He tweeted about “Cryin’ Chuck Schumer,” mocking Schumer for arguing that Trump should be more aggressive in fighting the virus. The next week, Trump would blame an Obama administration regulation for slowing the production of test kits. There was no truth to the charge.

    Throughout late February, Trump also continued to claim the situation was improving. On Feb. 26, he said: “We’re going down, not up. We’re going very substantially down, not up.” On Feb. 27, he predicted: “It’s going to disappear. One day — it’s like a miracle — it will disappear.” On Feb. 29, he said a vaccine would be available “very quickly” and “very rapidly” and praised his administration’s actions as “the most aggressive taken by any country.” None of these claims were true.
     
  8. FryDaddyJr

    FryDaddyJr Well-Known Member

    By the end of February, there were 85,403 confirmed cases, in 55 countries around the world.

    Early March
    Almost two decades ago, during George W. Bush’s presidency, the federal government developed guidelines for communicating during a public-health crisis. Among the core principles are “be first,” “be right,” “be credible,” “show respect” and “promote action.”

    But the Trump administration’s response to coronavirus, as a Washington Post news story put it, is “breaking almost every rule in the book.”

    The inconsistent and sometimes outright incorrect information coming from the White House has left Americans unsure of what, if anything, to do. By early March, experts already were arguing for aggressive measures to slow the virus’s spread and avoid overwhelming the medical system. The presidential bully pulpit could have focused people on the need to change their behavior in a way that no private citizen could have. Trump could have specifically encouraged older people — at most risk from the virus — to be careful. Once again, he chose not to take action.

    Instead, he suggested on multiple occasions that the virus was less serious than the flu. “We’re talking about a much smaller range” of deaths than from the flu, he said on March 2. “It’s very mild,” he told Hannity on March 4. On March 7, he said, “I’m not concerned at all.” On March 10, he promised: “It will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away.”

    The first part of March was also when more people began to understand that the United States had fallen behind on testing, and Trump administration officials responded with untruths.

    Alex Azar, the secretary of health and human services, told ABC, “There is no testing kit shortage, nor has there ever been.” Trump, while touring the C.D.C. on March 6, said, “Anybody that wants a test can get a test.”

    That C.D.C. tour was a microcosm of Trump’s entire approach to the crisis. While speaking on camera, he made statements that were outright wrong, like the testing claim. He brought up issues that had nothing to do with the virus, like his impeachment. He made clear that he cared more about his image than about people’s well-being, by explaining that he favored leaving infected passengers on a cruise ship so they wouldn’t increase the official number of American cases. He also suggested that he knew as much as any scientist:

    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 that instead of running for president.

    On March 10, the World Health Organization reported 113,702 cases of the virus in more than 100 countries.
     
  9. JoeNation
    No Mood

    JoeNation The ReichWing Abuser

    "The hospitals ships with stainless steel." I love these briefings. They are hilarious.
     
  10. Mopar Dude

    Mopar Dude Well-Known Member

    I too heard that yesterday. Sadly, when I work too much and am tired I catch myself jumbling thoughts via my big mouth. Given the man is shouldering the burden that he is currently carrying, I would thing a verbal gaffe could be forgivable.
     
  11. SmalltownMN
    Doh

    SmalltownMN All I can do is shake my head....

    Verbal gaffes.........just think, next year Joe Biden could be President.
     
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  12. JoeNation
    No Mood

    JoeNation The ReichWing Abuser

    It's not a verbal gaff. The man is a complete idiot. He talks out of his ass constantly. He has no idea what is going on. He didn't even know about the four senators in quarantine. He seemed particularly interested in Romney. I wonder why?
     
  13. Mopar Dude

    Mopar Dude Well-Known Member

    Like it or not.... Thew man is the duly elected leader and is charged with leading us out of this mess. Loathing him will not get us any closer to a solution. However supporting him just might get us closer to a fix.
     
  14. JohnHamilton
    Pensive

    JohnHamilton Well-Known Member

    Still playing with the dead cat, Frydaddy?

    You are as bad as the right wingers who are saying that this is a hoax that is designed to defeat Trump in 2020.

    We need to stick together to get through this. Cut the crap. There is no political advantage to what you are doing.
     
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  15. JoeNation
    No Mood

    JoeNation The ReichWing Abuser

    Trump’s Most Faithful Don’t Really Care If He Botched The Coronavirus Response

    WASHINGTON — They wanted Donald Trump to come to Washington to break things. Turn over tables. Shake up the system.

    To his most avid supporters, the president has done all these things, and they’re not about to let his handling of the coronavirus — and potentially the thousands of extra deaths it could cause — change their minds.

    “It sounds callous, but maybe that’s population control,” said Linda Moreno, 66, pointing out that the disease is most deadly to the elderly, such as herself.

    She and her husband, a Vietnam War veteran, are retired and travel the country in their RV, hitting as many Trump rallies as they can. They attended the July 4 event Trump staged on the National Mall last year, a rally in Minneapolis in October and one in Phoenix last month.

    Like many of his supporters, they believe that concerns about COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, are overblown, despite Trump’s recent 180-degree shift on the subject.

    “I really don’t know how contagious this thing is. It does seem like we’ve overreacted to a point,” said Stephen Moreno, 69, adding that they nevertheless returned to their Chino, California, home and are abiding by the guidelines to stay away from others. “I’m in that high-risk category. And it’s driving me nuts. I’d rather be out.”

    Trump downplayed the seriousness of the virus for six weeks after its rapid spread started raising concerns globally. He falsely claimed it was no worse than the seasonal flu, predicted without any scientific basis that it would disappear on its own come April and accused Democrats and the news media of trying to tank the stock market to hurt his reelection chances.

    That unwillingness to prepare for its inevitable spread in the United States cost the country precious weeks that it could have spent aggressively ramping up the production of coronavirus tests and increasing intensive care capacity at the nation’s hospitals, pandemic experts said.

    All this came two years after Trump dismantled the pandemic response team that his predecessor Barack Obama had created within the White House. Trump justified that move three weeks ago as a desire to save money — “Some of the people we cut, they haven’t been used for many, many years” — and falsely claimed he could hire them all back quickly if needed.

    [​IMG]
    “I believe in an outsider. Career politicians are nothing but trouble,” said one 58-year-old Trump supporter. (Photo: AP Photo/Mike McCarn)
    Rick Tyler, a political consultant who worked for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, said Trump’s performance in this crisis will have consequences this November.

    “If the coronavirus spread is as bad as it’s been in Italy, the election will only be about the competence of the federal response, which to date Trump has completely bungled,” Tyler said. “He lacks the knowledge and leadership to offer any useful information. His mostly irrelevant or non-factual statements have only added to confusion, panic and destabilization. Trump should not attend press briefings, tweet or issue statements about coronavirus. He should let the professionals do their work keeping Americans healthy and safe.”

    John Weaver, who worked for former Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s campaign in those primaries, said Trump won the benefit of the doubt in 2016 from some voters who heard the arguments that he was not qualified to deal with serious crises but supported him anyway because of their dislike of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. “In 2016, for all intents and purposes, Secretary Clinton was treated as the incumbent and Trump was the theory. Well, the madness theory is now a fact,” Weaver said.

    Trump’s defenders, though, argue that as sitting president, he can project “big, bold, strong leadership” that voters will like, even if he is not as detail-oriented as previous presidents. “You need some of that unconventional leadership,” said Jason Miller, a top official in Trump’s 2016 campaign and an outside adviser now. “If President Trump can continue leading us through this crisis, voters are going to reward him and he’s going to be reelected.”

    For many voters who backed Trump in 2016 and continue to back him now, that “unconventional” style is still attractive, even if it might lead to some poor decisions. They believe Trump is doing the best he can, and they doubt anyone else would have done much better — even Republican governors who had run against Trump in 2016 like Florida’s Jeb Bush or New Jersey’s Chris Christie, both of whom had experience guiding their states through natural disasters.

    “I believe in an outsider. Career politicians are nothing but trouble,” said Norris Vivier, a 58-year-old owner of a real estate business in Manchester, New Hampshire, who has already had to lay off workers because of the pandemic.

    He, like many Trump supporters, also wonders if the experts are not overreacting: “Destroy our economy and way of life over a virus?”

    He added that, in any event, he is glad Trump is in charge. “Considering we’re in uncharted territory, given the choice between having him or some of the other options, I’d rather have him. ... I don’t think necessarily that anyone would have handled it differently.”

    Even those who see some of Trump’s habits as counterproductive nevertheless said they will continue to support him.

    Barbara Guzman, who owns a label business in Cape Coral, Florida, and who saw Trump at a 2018 rally in nearby Naples, said Trump would be better off keeping his mouth shut and letting the experts in the government speak, rather than make a series of misleading or false statements that wind up needing to be corrected, thereby confusing the public.

    “Sometimes he shouldn’t say anything,” she said, but then added that such a wish was not likely to come true. “It’s almost like a child. You tell him not to do something, but he does it anyway. ... He’s 70-something. He’s not going to change.”
     
  16. JohnHamilton
    Pensive

    JohnHamilton Well-Known Member

    Joe likes dead cats too.

    Another canned response from the far-left wing copier in chief.
     
  17. JoeNation
    No Mood

    JoeNation The ReichWing Abuser

    You are right in one respect. Those Right-wingers are the worst. In fact, at the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, Trump repeatedly downplayed threat, inaccurately comparing it to the flu and telling his supporters that growing worry about the coronavirus was a "hoax."

    But you can't blame the stupid sheeple for believe what their God tells them.

    The question is where do we go from here and can we trust the guy in charge? I'm not apt to trust the guy that has been wrong at just about every turn.

    But then again, where do we go from here?

    If you mean that I should fall in line behind this chief idiot who has proven that he is an incompetent boob, then you and I will have to disagree about the way forward.

    If on the other hand, you decide to stop making excuses for this completely inept Administration that IS playing politics with this crisis and instead listen to the experts, I would agree to move forward side-by-side.

    I, for one, will not follow this moron right over a cliff. If you want to, by all means, have nice flight. If on the other hand, you can admit that this response has been a catastrophe and we need to work together to make everyone safe and sound, I'm all for it.

    My guess though, is that you want to blindly follow the very people that bungled literally every aspect of this crisis and you just want us to fall in line behind you. That will NEVER happen. Trust is gone. Long gone and it will have to be earned. And this isn't how a leader should be acting or tweeting.

     
  18. JoeNation
    No Mood

    JoeNation The ReichWing Abuser

    What an idiotic response. "Canned"? Do you even know how to use the word correctly?

    Everything you can't refute is "Canned". You are one the morons in the article no doubt.
     
  19. JohnHamilton
    Pensive

    JohnHamilton Well-Known Member

    Most of what you post here you copy from other sources. That's a fact.

    You need to lay off your stupid cartoons and sound bites. I don't click on that stuff because I've had too much trouble with computer viruses
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2020
  20. Mopar Dude

    Mopar Dude Well-Known Member

    Really, what good does this do any of us? We could (and probably will) spend decades throwing this accusation back and forth. This one is a double edge sword.

    What other choice is there, Joe? He is our duly elected leader. I once had a company commander in the Army that was a former Olympic marathon runner. I HATED that man. He near killed me running... Thing is, he was the commander. Not me. I had no choice but to support him..... Trump was elected. He was not impeached and he is driving this bus. And I hope for all our sakes he has this under control. I can only pray that he does.
     

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