“I don't take responsibility at all.”
That was Donald Trump in utter denial over our government's disastrous (non)response to the coronavirus outbreak. This is hardly the first time he has side-stepped any culpability for his administration's failings, and it will not be the last. Most Presidents have heeded the example of Truman and accepted the fact that “the buck stops” in the Oval Office. Not Trump. Not ever Trump. It's always the fault of Democrats or the “deep state” or Obama—or whoever happens to be handy. To my knowledge, he has never once taken responsibility for any negative outcome, even when his fingerprints are all over it, as in this case. He didn't start this outbreak, but in every other respect, he has been a major facilitator of the spread of this disease.
This facilitation began long before the first case of the Covid-19 was diagnosed in China. It began with his getting rid of a program (“Predict,” begun during the Bush-II Administration) to detect new viral threats to humanity before they became a pandemic, and his disbanding the rapid response team for pandemics initiated in the Obama Administration (when asked about this recently, Trump said, “I don't know anything about it”). In particular, that response team could have provided an early, effective and coherent response to the virus. Trump decided it wasn't important.
Make no mistake, these decisions were utterly calamitous as regards the pandemic now confronting us, but the missteps he made before the first reported cases were as nothing compared to what he has done, and not done, since. For more than a month after it became clear to all thinking citizens that this disease was a major disaster in the making, Trump pooh-poohed its seriousness, and routinely passed along misinformation about it—over and over again. Several times, he has “corrected” an expert on communicable disease with his own uneducated opinion, made up on the spot. Trump as epidemiologist.
To document all the lies and nonsense Trump has voiced about the current pandemic, would require a small book, but to mention just a few: He recently called the whole thing a “hoax” perpetrated by the Democrats and repeatedly said the virus posed no serious threat, once saying “It's going to disappear. One day, it's like a miracle, it will disappear.” Moronic balderdash! And a couple weeks ago he said “Anyone who wants a test can get one,” which can only be described as a lie, as was his claim that the US is the “most prepared” country in the world—when in fact, thanks in part to his “proactive” attacks on our preparedness, we are among the least prepared of industrialized nations. And he continues, over and over to spew his nonsense. (Now he claims he's “always known” this would be a pandemic!)
Make no mistake, his fanciful remarks are contributing to complacency among those who trust him—with the fawning conservative media exacerbating it all (Limbaugh: “The coronavirus is just the common cold, folks.”) This will directly result in the loss of life. But as counterproductive as his comments have been, they pale when compared to his inaction and lack of leadership. For six weeks he did almost nothing (the ban on Chinese travel the lone exception which by itself was not nearly enough). The moment it became clear that this disease was dangerous and was certain to spread to our shores (at least mid-January), any mediocre president would have sprung into action, gathering together the experts in the field to quickly hammer out a comprehensive response, and then decisively implement it, while providing facts and reassurance—not lies and denials—to the nation.
It has yet to happen. He has finally begun to address the issue with a small measure of the seriousness it deserves, but he still hasn't remotely done enough. Still he drags his feet—still he lies and misleads. What he has finally begun to do he should have begun weeks ago. It's too late. We now need to be on a war footing! More stringent measures must be taken before the disaster taking hold in Italy happens here. The Chinese went to Italy to advise them and their take away was that what Italy has done is not sufficient to stem the tide. If true, than in a matter of days, Italy may begin to lose unthinkable numbers every day to the virus. And our efforts here have yet to match Italy's. Some experts are saying we are approximately 10 days behind Italy in terms of the infection curve. If true, we are within weeks of unimaginable disaster.
Where the White House has failed, some local governments have stepped up their response, most notably a few Democratic governors across the country. While their actions are to be commended, it won't be enough without an appropriate Federal intervention. And it doesn't help that the lackadaisical attitude from the Oval Office has filtered down to many of our fellow citizens.
Today I visited a grocery store and found the majority of shoppers wandering about with no visible concern regarding the recommended social distancing. Twice, save for a quick dodge on my part, a customer would have actually brushed against me as they passed by. Thanks in part to the weeks of misinformation coming from an unconcerned White House, many believe they have nothing to fear.
Unless something changes, that lack of concern will translate to hundreds of thousands of deaths. This isn’t inevitable, but unless more is done, it could be an underestimate. And yet still, the White House daily spews forth misinformation—emanating incompetence and a distressing lack of concern with every breath.
Mr. President, I have to agree with you—you're not 'responsible at all.' You are hopelessly irresponsible.