Could President Trump Have Really Have Done Anything About the Coronavirus?

I think they are under-reporting, but they also knew way back when not to let the Diamond Princess disembark while the rest of the world was "meh-ing" the whole thing, so I think their numbers are good, but not as good as they claim. (Personal opinion.) No matter how xenophobic they behave, there is no way they escaped this THAT good.

 

The problem is that Trump didn't even try or say anything. Instead of advocating for shutting down borders, airports, and doing a lot of testing, he spent the first couple months denying that covid was much or a problem. If he called for strong measures, and the democrats in congress struck him down, then I would agree with you. But he didn't even let out a peep.

 

One of the concepts I've been grappling with is that he may have been in a "damned if you do/don't" situation. If he HAD listened to the people the Japanese were listening to and taken harsher measures, earlier, the politicians with a (D) insignia would have been shouting "authoritarian," "draconian," "dictatorship," from the roof tops. I don't doubt it. We have to find some common ground or these world-wide challenges will be our downfall.

 

When you are a leader you need to make decisions that save lives. I know Trump was thinking about his re-election and the stock market, and knew that if he pushed for strong policies, and it turned out to be nothing, he would hurt the economy and his chances at re-election.

Both China and South Korea acted decisively. China had police out in the street keeping people in their homes. South Korea closed everything down early and tested very agressively early on. As a result these countries have only a few thousand cases and are partially opening up again.

I don't just blame Trump. Even though the democrats wanted more action than Trump did, it wasn't like they were pushing for tough policies either. Most European nations have seen a weak response too. And what is pitiful is they failed to respond properly after having the hindsight of seeing what was happening in China.

But Trump spent months denying that covid was a problem and spreading misinformation. Even now, many states don't even have stay at home orders, airports are still working, and most borders are still open. We still have people out and about on beaches. Even after all this, we are still failing to respond properly.

I would actually prefer that we just let the virus do its thing than be indecisive. Sure a lot more people will die, but at least we wouldn't have an economic depression. It was our indecisiveness that doomed us, even after seeing China, even after seeing South Korea, even after seeing Italy.

 

Really?
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.al...egy-faces-breaking-point-200331052210387.html

 

Agreed, but, millions of people are doing what is needed and carrying the burden for those that are too stupid, ignorant or downright obstinate to know any better, without needing any guidance from an elected official. In this day of endless information, people should be able to do this themselves. The information is out there, in very-easy-to-digest bites of information, to know this thing is to be taken VERY seriously.

Sometimes I think we should let natural selection have a greater role in our society. We save people from themselves far too often, and it hurts us at times like this. Harsh, but true.

 

Stop being a fake news troll and use your own brain.

 

While I agree with the overall statement, you misrepresented some key facts. First, "Dr. Li Wenliang on Dec 30th" did not sound the "first warning of human to human transfer". He was the first to warn of the existance of the virus. This was nearly a month and a half after the first case was discovered in Wuhan. At the time, he did not know that he was dealing with a new strain of coronavirus. Four days later, he was summoned to the Public Security Bureau, and ordered to sign a paper. That paper was an acknowledgement that he had been warned not to keep spreading lies about the existance of the virus. Weeks later he died from the disease.

Second, the WHO claimed in mid January, that COVID-19 could be transmitted human to human. But China adamantly denied the claim. Trump's advisors sided with China until the third COVID-19 was found in Chicago. This was the husband of the second case identified in the US. This man had not traveled with his wife to China. The third case disproved the Chinese claim of no human to human transfer. This third case was discovered until January 31st. That same day, President Trump signed an Executive Order banning a non US citizens, who lived in or visited Wuhan, from entering the US.

Prior to January 31st, the Administration thought they were dealing with only treating those exposed to the disease in Wuhan. Once human to human transfer was verified, the President acted accordingly. So, January 31st, was the first day the President could have acted.

 

If you want natural selection to do its thing, then we end the social distancing, and open everything up, and let this thing kill 2 million Americans. Our economy will only have a recession like 2008 instead of a depression in that scenario. But our hospitals will be over-run with tens of millions of cases, and people with other conditions may not get the treatment they need either. Most of the people who need treatment would be left to die. Natural selection I guess.

If you don't want natural selection, then we get the military out in the streets and keep people in their homes like China did. It worked for them. No more shopping, and you only get food delivered. After a month, we can return a bit back to normal.

If we do anything in between, hoping that everyone is responsible, we will end up like Italy. We will end up with the virus continuing to spread, and the nation still mostly being shut down anyway, just longer, and with more people dead.

 

The problem with second guessing, months later is that it is based on hindsight. We have the advantage of information that President Trump did not have at the time.

Distraff, President Trump did not deny the existance of COVID-19, nor did he knowingly pass misinformation. He acted on the information being provided by the Chinese government. Information that we now know was false. Also, it is up to the individual states to issue stay at home orders and close airports. Not the President. Further, effective March 21, the borders with Canada and Mexico were shutdown for all nonessential travel.

Curious Always, while millions might be following COVID-19 protection procedures, there are far more that are not following these procedures. Even in states that issued stay at home orders. Additional, no one, not even the government, can "carrying the burden for those that are too stupid, ignorant or downright obstinate to know any better". My following correct protection procedures might protect you from COVID-19 from me, and me from you, but it will not stop you from getting the disease from someone else. The only way to prevent the spread is for everyone to practice these procedures for themselves.

 

I did wonder about letting the virus go full steam ahead.
It would kill off the “ ruling class”.
It would be a dogs breakfast for ages and there would be no guarantees of a healthy economy.
People like Warren Buffett, probably Jerome Powell, the Supreme Court the Joint Chiefs of Staff - all dead,
Then all the underprepared, underqualified, underlings would have to step up.

 

Thanks for your clarification.

For your info;

Another Chinese doctor also warned colleagues of a "SARS like virus".....

"A doctor in Wuhan has spoken out after seeing several of her colleagues die from the coronavirus, criticizing hospital authorities for suppressing early warnings of the outbreak in an interview censors have been trying to erase from the internet.

In an interview with the Chinese magazine, Renwu, or People, Ai Fen, director of the emergency at Wuhan Central hospital, said she was reprimanded after alerting her superiors and colleagues of a Sars-like virus seen in patients in December."

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...-doctor-ai-fen-speaks-out-against-authorities

----------------------

In addition.....

New SARS-Like Virus Can Be Spread Human-To-Human: Top Chinese Expert
Two people caught the disease from family members, state media says.

JAN 20, 2020

"BEIJING — The head of a Chinese government expert team said Monday that human-to-human transmission has been confirmed in an outbreak of a new coronavirus"

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/china-coronavirus-outbreak_ca_5e25b1aec5b6321176174617

 

NOTE: Human-to-human transmission confirmed in China, Jan 20th
NOTE: Human-to-human transmission confirmed in the U.S., Jan 31st

 

Could President Trump Have Really Have Done Anything About the Coronavirus?

Federal government doesn't fight viral outbreaks. Those who work in the medical industry do that. Government just throws money at problems and that does harm as often as it does good.

 

Actually the wealthy people are more likely to survive because they will have the best medical treatment. It will be the common people who will suffer the most. With hospitals flooded by millions of people, most will be turned away. This would be natural selection at its finest hour, but maybe not the finest hour for our country.

 

Yeah - my comment was sarcastic, out of context and completely subject to misinterpretation. I'm frustrated at how many people are not taking this thing seriously, which is only going to increase the amount of time we all have to sit in our homes, not doing anything except organizing and doing puzzles. If we had let natural selection do its' thing all along, the stupid people would all have been dead long before now and they wouldn't be hindering our efforts to get this thing under control. It wasn't really serious. Yesterday afternoon was particularly frustrating for me.

It was in poor taste; I'm just soooooo frustrated with these people.

 

What information from China are you talking about? China was shutting everything down in February. Trump was calling out the media hoax over the virus and comparing it to the flu into Mid March.

It appears you oppose the government enforcing a quaratine. The problem is that not everyone will do this vuluntarily and the virus will continue to spread for weeks exponentially. If we reacted like China and South Korea, we would not be in shutdown right now.

 

NOT calling it a "Hoax" would have been a good start.

And, the National Lockdown came a Month Too Late.

 

Unsupportable hyper-partisan nonsense.

 

There is no national lock-down.

 

Your article quoted a Respiratory expert, and someone from the National Health Commission task force. But what they did not say speaks volumes. Especially, when you look at the statements from the Chinese Government reported five days before. The Expert stated that there was proof of human to human transfer, but the doctors and Government stood apart on the issue. The Health Commission pointed out that doctors and nurses had tested positive, but they did not say whether they had been to, or eaten food from, the fish market.

Now, take the Government's official statement from five days before:

"Chuang and other Hong Kong health officials spoke to reporters Wednesday following a trip to Wuhan, where mainland Chinese authorities briefed them on the outbreak.

The threat of human-to-human transmission remains low, Chuang said, as hundreds of people, including medical professionals, have been in close contact with infected individuals and have not been infected themselves.

She echoed Wuhan authorities’ assertion that there remains no definitive evidence of human-to-human transmission."

When the woman in Chicago infected her husband, that was the case the confirmed that the US had to take steps to combat human to human transfer.

 

Could President Trump Have Really Have Done Anything About the Coronavirus?

......BEFORE and AFTER Trump's Jan 31st travel restrictions

BEFORE; Most western leaders, if not all, kept informing their citizens that the risk of an outbreak was low.

CEPI, Moderna Inc., NIH, NIAID, FDA, Dr. Fauci, Well done!

AFTER; Knowing what we know now;

1. a nation-wide shut-down VERSUS a gradual shut-down
2. ?
3. ?
4. ?
5. ?

Thanks for your input.

 

The first case of COVID-19 checked into a Wuhan hospital on Nov 17, 2019. The Chinese Government did not notify anyone about the disease. As we have been discussing, a doctor sent a memo to the doctors telling them to protect themselves. But the Chinese Government claimed that there was no proof of human to human transfer. Any doctor that disagreed was called in and threatened. The Chinese Government did not admit that the COVID-19 could be transfered human to human. There were several steps that should have been that would have limited the spread of the virus. One of the key ones was cancelling the Lunar Festival. It is estimated that as many as 5 million Wuhan Citizens went to the festival where they caroused with people from all over the world.

The Chinese Government did not notify the world of the virus. They did not effectively shutdown the Wuhan area. They hid the fact that this virus could be spread human to human. They tried to blame the US military for the virus. Should I go on?

https://www.statnews.com/2020/01/15...ule-out-person-to-person-spread-of-new-virus/

I am not against the quarantines, or the stay at home orders. But I do not want it said that President Trump spent months denying the problem. That is nothing but a lying liberal talking point. The President acted based on the best information that was available at the time. The Democrats called him racist for the steps that he took at the end of January. You noted that China was shutting down everything in February. You should note that was about two months after the virus was identified by them. They sent copies of the virus' DNC back on Jan 20, but did not shut down Wuhan for several more weeks.

So, the President's actions were hampered by the misinformation coming out of China.

 

A nation wide shutdown is not realistic, and would probably be ruled unconstitutional. A shut-down, quarantine order and stay at home order has to come from the Governors. President Trump has taken every step that he legally can take, and acted on the best information he had at the time. In my opinion, there would have been for more deaths if someone else was in office. We currently have the highest number of cases. More then twice the next highest. But we have also tested more people then any other country has. At this time, positive cases are running about 20% of those tested. Also, the ratio between recovered to deaths is 2:1 in favor of recovery.

Look, this is going to be a long slow trip from here. This should be a time when this country unites under a common cause, but that is not what we are seeing. Too many people are trying to make President Trump look bad without acknowledging what he has done right. Near me, there is a grocery store warehouse. As soon as this outbreak started, the warehouse workers walked out. They are striking to unionize. At two other warehouse, workers have walked off the job with no explanation as to why. This week, I had to order from two of these stores, because neither store had everything that we needed. Even then, there were 14 items that were available when I ordered had to it were no longer available. Tomorrow, I will have to walk to a different store to check for items that were not available, and order some of the items through Amazon. The result of this is costing us an additional $150 to $200, and that is just covering the next two weeks.

 

Thus illustrated, the political desperation of the left.

W/o the benefit of hindsight, no one can describe what Trump should have done differently.