Now that our fearful leader has decided 135,000 deaths by sometime in August is a cheap price to pay for his re-election, I can only imagine what the toll will be by this time next year. It is liable to make our present body count look like a day at the beach.
By surrounding himself with charlatans and sycophants, tRump has accelerated the GOP's hostility to expertise at a time when the nation needs it most. Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birks have been sidelined and their prescription for more social distancing is seen by many republicans as getting in the way of their maintaining power. The consequences will become apparent in coming months. As many pundits have said, taking care of the health challenges associated with the pandemic will actually spur the economy in the long run. However, the long run probably means republicans will lose control of the Senate as well as the White House this November. Hence the emphasis on economic recovery instead of disease mitigation.
If this strategy is to succeed, the body count will have to be muted. I remember the daily death counts during the Vietnam war and what it did to LBJ's presidency. Expect the numbers to be discounted as we head into summer. Already, some pols are saying many of the casualties are in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The implication is the deaths of 70 year olds are not as important as younger, more healthy people. Of course many of these older Americans are the base republicans need to get elected. If the Faux News crowd dies off, it's hard to imagine where future GOP voters will come from.
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