The week-long protests have drowned out what would have been COVID-19 headlines. Recent developments listed below are all connected, and not in a good way.
First, in a Helen Branswell interview for STAT, Dr. Fauci reported that the task force meetings have been cut back, and his interactions with the president have been reduced from three or four times a week. Fauci has not seen the president in two weeks. This is the initial clue in which direction we're headed.
Second, as reported by CNN, the CDC has begun regular public briefings. President Trump avoids responsibility and bad outcomes like the not-so-proverbial plague, so he has handed off the public face of the crisis to the CDC. Bad outcomes are assuredly on the itinerary, then, and probably not long in arriving. If we were looking at rosy outcomes and optimism, the president's smiling countenance would be front and center, giving us all the good news.
Third, I want to pass along a report from the Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team. It's the Imperial College of London's "Report 23: State-level tracking of COVID-19 in the United States." The study analyzes data through May 20 and was published May 24.
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/medicine/mrc-gida/2020-05-21-COVID19-Report-23.pdf
Bear in mind that this report does not take into account Memorial Day weekend crowd issues and their impact.
When we combine these three pieces of information, the handwriting is on the wall in glowing neon. Flash bangs, tear gas, and flames may temporarily obscure that handwriting, but brace yourselves. The tea leaves are beyond ominous. For many states such as Florida, Texas, Georgia, and Arkansas, the pandemic has begun embellishing its already lethal reputation.
Bob Dietz
June 1, 2020
