This archive report was first published on 14 July 2020.
Reality Sets In ¶
As the US struggles to contain the spread of the coronavirus, state and local leaders are taking drastic measures to slow the virus's march across the country. In a stark reversal of President Donald Trump's earlier claims that the worst was over, these leaders are imposing new restrictions, shutting down businesses, and urging citizens to stay home.
From California to Texas, governors and mayors are taking a hard line against the virus, imposing mask mandates, closing indoor restaurants and bars, and limiting gatherings to just 10 people. In Florida, which has seen a record number of new cases, the governor has ordered the closure of all bars and nightclubs.
Meanwhile, President Trump remains out of touch with reality, insisting that the economy is on the verge of a 'transition to greatness.' But the facts on the ground tell a different story. As new cases of the virus reach 60,000 a day nationwide, the country is beginning to shut down again, with cities like Houston and Los Angeles imposing strict restrictions on businesses and gatherings.
Science Wins Out ¶
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has been a vocal advocate for a more cautious approach to reopening. In a recent webinar, he warned that fast openings had triggered a disaster, and that the country needed to take a more measured approach to slowing the spread of the virus.
'We did not shut down entirely — and that's the reason why, when we went up, we started to come down, and then we plateaued at a level that was really quite high — about 20,000 infections a day,' Fauci said. 'Then, as we started to reopen, we're seeing the surges that we're seeing today, as we speak, in California … in Arizona, in Texas, in Florida, and in several other states.'
Lessons from New York and Massachusetts ¶
Despite the challenges facing the country, there are glimmers of hope. In New York City, there were no Covid-19 deaths in a 24-hour period for the first time in months, a moment of deliverance that Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio called 'striking and moving.' In Massachusetts, the seven-day average of positive tests had fallen to 1.7%, down 94% since mid-April.
These successes serve as a reminder that the key to slowing the spread of the virus is to take a hard line against it, imposing strict restrictions and waiting for the curve of infections to be properly suppressed before lifting restrictions.
Trump's Achilles' Heel ¶
But despite these successes, President Trump remains fixated on his own political prospects, ignoring the complexities of the pandemic and the needs of the American people. His obsession with his own reelection has been the driving force of his administration, and it's a recurrent theme that has led him to make some of the most disastrous decisions of his presidency.
As the country struggles to contain the spread of the virus, it's clear that Trump's impatience to get the economy roaring again may turn into a fatal political flaw. And it's got the potential to doom his dreams of a second term.
