It’s not an accident

There is a lot of talk about the revelations in Bob Woodward’s book Rage that is coming out soon. Mark Sumner of Kos reported the big revelation is that way back on February 7 the nasty guy said he understood how deadly the coronavirus is and how contagious it is. And yet he did nothing to prepare and kept claiming it would disappear.

And on March 19 the nasty guy said he knew he was lying and was doing so to not create a panic. He was telling Woodward one thing and telling the public another. Wrote Sumner:

The COVID-19 disaster in the United States—a disaster that will top 200,000 dead this week—was not an accident. It didn’t come from a failure to grasp the seriousness of the issue, the deadliness of the virus, or the urgent need for coordinated federal action. Everything that has happened, from the deaths to the economic disaster, has been the direct result of strategic decisions by the man who bankrupted a whole series of casinos.

Trump did this on purpose. It’s not an accident. It’s murder.

Some people have questioned Woodward’s ethics of saving that tidbit for his book, which would appear seven months later, rather than telling the public back in February what the nasty guy had said. His contract probably said any juicy morsels could not be disclosed before the book was published.

Which gave the nasty guy an opening. Kerry Eleveld of Kos reported that in a press conference the nasty guy accused Woodward of not immediately telling the public. No, you idiot, it is the job of the president to warn and protect the public from great harm, not the job of some writer.

As for that desire not to create a panic … Overrun hospitals won’t create a panic? 190,000 dead won’t create a panic? Attacking protesters in Portland won’t create a panic? Sheesh.

Joan McCarter of Kos reported:

No one knew better than the people closest to Trump, including Republican senators. When they voted to acquit Trump on February 5, they knew. They knew that he had obstructed justice, they knew that he was a liar and a cheat and they knew this epidemic had reached our shores and that Trump was likely the least capable person imaginable to deal with what was coming. They let this happen. And now that it's all out in public, not a one of them wants to talk about it.

Hunter of Kos reported that the nasty guy administration has a new quarter billion dollar coronavirus effort. Nah, it isn’t something as silly as supplying masks or beefing up testing, or even creating advertising to encourage physical distancing. It is advertising, though. It’s message is to “defeat despair.” Yeah, that’ll help.



McCarter also reported that Moscow Mitch put forward a “skinny” coronavirus relief package – Democrats call it “emaciated.” It provides very little to workers, yet $161 million for coal corporations. McCarter wrote that it won’t pass and wasn’t intended to. It is a way for him to say, we tried, but Democrats stopped us.

Since Moscow Mitch will only negotiate with fellow Republicans – a good portion who are desperate to show something to voters and the rest who don’t want any more spending – and because there is a government spending bill with a deadline in three weeks, there won’t be a virus relief bill any time soon.

In a second post McCarter explained how skinny. Back in May the House passed a $3 trillion virus relief bill. The House said they would accept a $2 trillion deal from the Senate. The GOP offered a $1 trillion bill, but couldn’t get enough GOP senators to sign on. So this is a half trillion. It didn’t pass a procedural vote, where it needed 60. All but one Republicans voted for it, which gave it 52 in favor.
McCarter concluded:

The real problem is that McConnell is framing this as the last train out of the station for coronavirus relief before the election. He fully intends to do no more on the crisis.

Karen Attiah, of the Washington Post tweeted:

Being here in Texas is a reminder that people love Donald Trump precisely *because* he says whatever is on his mind, even if he is crude or cruel.

They like and want what he appears to have. Freedom and power.

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a historian on authoritarians, responded:

“He says what others only dare to whisper.” Margherita Sarfatti wrote about her lover, Mussolini. For 100 years this “frankness” has been seen as key to authoritarians’ authenticity.

And to that OceanSurfAce tweeted there are four groups of remaining nasty guy supporters: The corrupt, the conned, the Klan, and the cult.



Greg Dworkin, in his pundit roundup for Kos, quoted Leslie Dorrough Smith of The Conversation on masks being a religious issue. Here’s a bit of it:

The function of religious speech is to amplify the authority of an idea through appeals to seemingly unquestionable authorities, like deities and “ultimate truths.”

Chris Nocco, Sheriff of Pasco County, Florida (which includes Tampa) has embraced “predictive policing.” That’s predicting who will soon commit a crime and arrest them before they do. It has become a system of organized harassment, said the Tampa Bay Times. A deputy said the purpose is “Make their lives miserable until they move or sue.” But even moving a few states away doesn’t end the harassment. It’s unconstitutional. And it doesn’t work – it is the only county in the area of similar size where violent crime increased.



Bill in Portland, Maine and his Cheers and Jeers column shared an image that shows the difference between Data, Information, Knowledge, Insight, Wisdom, and Conspiracy Theory.