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Thursday, November 19, 2020
The United States is at its worst in the corona pandemic. But President-elect Trump remains undercover after his defeat. Successor Biden shows enthusiasm for action in the fight against Corona, but his hands are tied.
Since his electoral defeat, Donald Trump has been to the golf course four times, made two public appearances and posted dozens of messages about alleged voter fraud on Twitter. Since his loss to Joe Biden, more than 11,000 people have died after being infected with the coronavirus; Overall, the country has more than a quarter of a million deaths in the pandemic. But it appears that the president-elect has lost all interest in leading the country through the crisis, or dealing with it.
To make clear what that means, Washington Post journalist Max Boot uses a drastic mental game: “Imagine if President Franklin D. Roosevelt had decided in November 1942 to withdraw from World War II because it didn’t go so well. as expected “. For months, critics have blamed Trump for serious failures in the fight against the pandemic. Among other things, he is accused of downplaying the virus, despite his own Covid-19 illness in October, after which he asked Americans to “not be afraid” of the virus.
In the election campaign, he continued to claim that the United States had almost ended the pandemic. The facts already spoke a different language. On Election Day, more than 100,000 new infections were recorded in 24 hours for the first time. Daily value was last at an average of around 150,000. But even the escalating crisis in the crown does not remove Trump from the cover. He has yet to admit his defeat to Biden and lets the days go by largely without known dates.
His spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany said Wednesday that the president was very busy with the virus and the withdrawal of several thousand troops from Afghanistan and Iraq. However, the public does not receive much information. If Trump talks about Corona, it will be in connection with recent advances in vaccine development. He affirms this progress for himself and his government. It does not announce new measures to protect the population. Immunologist Anthony Fauci recently said that the acting president has not attended Corona task force meetings at the White House for months.
Biden excited by Corona’s stories
US President-elect Joe Biden, on the other hand, is showing enthusiasm for action after making the fight against the pandemic a priority in the election campaign. Immediately after his election victory, Biden presented his Crown Council of Experts. Additionally, he continues to remind Americans of the importance of wearing masks and preparing them for a “very dark winter.”
On Wednesday, he met with healthcare workers on a video line to hear about their experiences. Mary Turner works as a nurse in an intensive care unit in the US state of Minnesota. She described holding the hands of dying patients who were crying for their families who could no longer see them. How his own teammates had to breathe and fight for their lives. “We know the right way to fight the virus,” Turner said, but the government and employers failed to protect front-line workers. For example, there are not enough protective masks yet, so they have to be reused despite the increased risk.
As Turner spoke, Biden produced a tissue and rubbed his eyes with it. Looking at his future responsibilities in the pandemic, Biden later said: “It’s like going to war, you need a commander-in-chief. (…) I will make mistakes, but I promise you, I will admit them.”
Denial until death
But until his inauguration on January 20, the hands of the Democrats are largely tied. Trump’s refusal to give up government affairs could also make induction into the White House more difficult. “If we don’t coordinate, more people could die,” Biden warned Monday. In a crisis like the pandemic, the transfer of official functions is more important than ever, warned the immunologist Fauci, who, as director of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, witnessed five government transfers. “It’s like handing over a witness in a race: you don’t want anyone to stop, just pass it by and let it run.”
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, was alarmed by the “power vacuum” in Washington. Governors must now do everything possible to save lives and follow the advice of health experts, he said Monday. Many states have re-adjusted their crown requirements. Whitmer partnered with colleagues from other hard-hit states in the Midwest to urge people to be careful and wear a mask before Thanksgiving next week.
The White House sends a different message. Trump’s spokeswoman said in the dispute over the crown measures Wednesday on Fox News that it was not “the American way” to put people in jail for 30 days if celebrated with more than six people at home. He was referring to Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s statement that violating crown rules could lead to a worst-case arrest. “We are not losing our freedom in this country,” McEnany said. “As individuals, we make responsible health decisions.” But in the meantime, several Republican governors have taken steps they had previously blocked. In North Dakota, for example, Governor Doug Burgum imposed mask requirements and restrictions on restaurants. In West Virginia, Governor Jim Justice ordered that from now on masks must be worn in enclosed public spaces.
The contrary actions of the political camps – appeasement on the one hand, strict measures on the other – have not been without consequences. Even dying patients refused to admit the virus existed, nurse Jodi Doering, who works in the state of South Dakota, told CNN. “Your last words are: it can’t be, it’s not real.” Some patients preferred to believe they had lung cancer. He wrote on Twitter that others were yelling at him, demanding “magic medicine” and saying that Biden would ruin America, all while breathing heavily.
