Could someone tell me why THIS is never discussed? Trump cut a disease emergence surveillance program through USAID three months before the emergence of COVID in Wuhan. Yes, it is not known whether the pandemic could have been avoided, but the program had identified coronaviruses before, including the closest relative of the actual virus that went, well, viral, in 2020.
With all the conspiracy theories, and jumping to conclusions, I have never understood why no one blames Trump for the 2020 pandemic. Certainly, he has left us exposed to risk of pandemics from the start.
Sad to say that we may have to wait until this idiot is dead or gone before we can put back in place what he has tried to destroy. Same with windmills and solar panels and so much else. We are truly the laughingstock of the world.
The Trump approach works great, if everything "just disappears, like magic", and if you don't test people who are infected, thereby keeping your numbers down. Ignorance is bliss, and Trump is the happiest m-fer on Earth.
Here in Iowa, Republicans just passed a bill restricting the next governor's powers in a public health emergency. (E.g. no regulation of churches, private behavior, no required vaccines)
If we have a bird flu or other pandemic, we are so screwed.
One thing is certain. Trump believes "If you do not measure it, you do not have to manage it". How business executives, people in leadership positions, or his so called subject matter experts continue to think this is any way to run anything is beyond my comprehension. Trump 1.0 proved it, yet here we are in an even more demented Trump 2.0 timeline. Simply, Trump should not be in any leadership position.
I'm still flabbergasted that Trump politicized a pandemic; millions of Americans died. Then the country turned around and blamed Biden and gave the country back to the man who has proven he doesn't care how many die, if he gets to do whatever he wants.
A quick correction. I believe that the US actually has not technically withdrawn from the WHO. This requires a one year notice and the payment of overdue fees. Not surprisingly, Trump has stiffed the organization and so has not yet been permitted to remove the US from its roster.
But learning (ie, taking in new information) is SO woke! REAL Americans already know everything, and whatever they don't isn't important. Classic American conceit.
THIS. Trump and his minions are making the world (including the US) less safe. With international travel and shipping, pathogens can quickly travel to the US. With less support for global and public health, there will be more pathogens that will take more time to be identified and handled. Finally, with new diseases emerging and with old ones returning, countries, including the US, will be in an uproar. Some estimates of Google searches for "hantavirus" in the US alone show an increase of 1000% in May. Unsettled societies and anxious societies mean the world world, including the US, becomes worse.
Could someone tell me why THIS is never discussed? Trump cut a disease emergence surveillance program through USAID three months before the emergence of COVID in Wuhan. Yes, it is not known whether the pandemic could have been avoided, but the program had identified coronaviruses before, including the closest relative of the actual virus that went, well, viral, in 2020.
With all the conspiracy theories, and jumping to conclusions, I have never understood why no one blames Trump for the 2020 pandemic. Certainly, he has left us exposed to risk of pandemics from the start.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/03/trump-scrapped-pandemic-early-warning-program-system-before-coronavirus
Sad to say that we may have to wait until this idiot is dead or gone before we can put back in place what he has tried to destroy. Same with windmills and solar panels and so much else. We are truly the laughingstock of the world.
The Trump approach works great, if everything "just disappears, like magic", and if you don't test people who are infected, thereby keeping your numbers down. Ignorance is bliss, and Trump is the happiest m-fer on Earth.
Here in Iowa, Republicans just passed a bill restricting the next governor's powers in a public health emergency. (E.g. no regulation of churches, private behavior, no required vaccines)
If we have a bird flu or other pandemic, we are so screwed.
The way religions have responded to disease outbreaks thruout history is tragically hilarious.
The Plague in Europe in the 14th century is a hoot.
Thank you for a clear-eyed presentation of what the virus is, and isn't. It would be great if cable news also presented this with clarity.
One thing is certain. Trump believes "If you do not measure it, you do not have to manage it". How business executives, people in leadership positions, or his so called subject matter experts continue to think this is any way to run anything is beyond my comprehension. Trump 1.0 proved it, yet here we are in an even more demented Trump 2.0 timeline. Simply, Trump should not be in any leadership position.
Thank you, Jonathan. I appreciate your reporting.
If I remember correctly, Hantavirus is what Gene Hackman and his wife died from.
Her yes, him no: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/apr/28/gene-hackman-betsy-arakawa-final-autopsy-results-complex-health-issues
I'm still flabbergasted that Trump politicized a pandemic; millions of Americans died. Then the country turned around and blamed Biden and gave the country back to the man who has proven he doesn't care how many die, if he gets to do whatever he wants.
Trump is also a lethal virus
Thank you
Did you know that Yosemite had an outbreak of Hantavirus in 2012 and it barely made the news? No hysteria about a pandemic ensued.
A quick correction. I believe that the US actually has not technically withdrawn from the WHO. This requires a one year notice and the payment of overdue fees. Not surprisingly, Trump has stiffed the organization and so has not yet been permitted to remove the US from its roster.
Isn’t rump supposed to travel international this or next week? Bettcha he cancels.
Ignorance Kills.
But learning (ie, taking in new information) is SO woke! REAL Americans already know everything, and whatever they don't isn't important. Classic American conceit.
THIS. Trump and his minions are making the world (including the US) less safe. With international travel and shipping, pathogens can quickly travel to the US. With less support for global and public health, there will be more pathogens that will take more time to be identified and handled. Finally, with new diseases emerging and with old ones returning, countries, including the US, will be in an uproar. Some estimates of Google searches for "hantavirus" in the US alone show an increase of 1000% in May. Unsettled societies and anxious societies mean the world world, including the US, becomes worse.
Starts playing 'Don't Fear the Reaper'.