July 5, 2020

July 5, 2020

SHAME ON YOU PETER NAVARRO!

The blame game has a face, it’s Peter Navarro.  Comments from an July 3, 2020 MSNBC interview has me thinking its propaganda time. The election must be nigh. He is the individual that had the responsibility for the failed Defense Production Act (DPA) virus coordination. 

In the interview, he seriously accused the Chinese of manufacturing the virus without any evidence, accused the Chinese of spawning the virus with a 100,000 Chinese national hoard knowingly infected with the virus, traveling to Italy and the United States. Peter Navarro is also still pushing hydroxychloroquine as a prophylactic. 

Peter Navarro a trade specialist, not a medical professional, quoted a small Detroit Hospital study on the drug hydroxychloroquine. This, after he let it be known in the interview that he had purchased 60 million doses of hydroxychloroquine.  So he admitted he spent taxpayer dollars for a magical wishful thinking musings of the President.  Is he trying to justify the purchase?  His purchases also created a shortage for the medicine and those that had a real need were searching for the medication and the government is hoarding the drug.  Both the FDA and CDC have discounted the use of the drug having no therapeutic effects based on extensive studies, which have had peer review.  Is Peter still ruminating the magical cures for his boss?

Professionals in the fields of virology and immunology have all concluded the virus was not manufactured and any talk of this is propaganda and conspiracy theory. Does Peter, like the president, not believe in science but conspiracy theory?  Who, within the government other than Trump  and Fox conspiracy channel, still believes this?

As for the 100,000 Chinese hoard, which Peter had referred, I claim BS.  The Donald was 24th in closing the flights from China and 38th in closing European flights. There is no proof and there cannot be, due to the lack of testing. Oh yeah Peter, here is another one of your failures, the test kits and not using the DPA. 

The countries that have controlled the virus immediately required massive testing and tracing. This made the virus come under control and fewer tests are then needed in that country.  Yes Mr. President, the testing is still and will always be lacking due to the inadequate response to testing initially.  Mr. Trump, you can brag all you want about the quantity of tests relative to other countries, however, face the fact that you being late with testing now required 10 times the tests, as a result of your delay. The lack of immediate testing and tracing created a situation where community spreading occurred and with asymptomatic spread the virus takes off. 

Can we, in the United States, blame the “for profit motivation” for the lack of testing and not putting the public health first?  Making a profit during a public health crisis is unbecoming.  I would say it’s tantamount to war profiteering.  This is a war and every tool in the arsenal should have been used. Trump’s initial delays and saying it will go away for 2 months and then tossing the ball to the states created the current situation. 

For profit companies are providing 50 individual states test kits.  50 states in lieu of 1 DPA contract for each company, using a distribution system and logistics expertise of the military to allocate the resources and have DCAA audit to insure compliance with the contracts.  The allocation would be equitable and without favor, knowing the hot spots would be able to re-supply as in foreign entanglements.  Was the for-profit decision yours Peter?

Even after the ban on flights, over 400,000 individuals came from two areas China and Europe, and over 40,000 from China. These travelers were primarily U.S, citizens.  So Peter, quit trying to blame China for Trump’s inadequate response. This fog is unbecoming. Remember the truth, it always comes out. 

The breakout in Italy was a result of housekeepers and other workers coming back from vacationing to China celebrating the Chinese New Year.  Chinese American citizens also came back from Chinese New Year, which this year was February 25, 2020. Both Seattle and San Francisco have large amounts of Chinese Americans and these are the Chinese hoards Peter is referring to. There was no conspiracy, only normal travel patterns. The problem has always been asymptomatic passage of the virus and its incubation rate.

He bragged about N95 mask production in the United States, making 20 million masks (Mo.?). The numbers of N95 masks estimated by medical professionals to be required by the end of July is 160 millions. Masks are disposable and made for single use by medical and EMT professionals.  It is estimated only 130 million will be available by month’s end.  Trump has had 5 months to respond to this crisis. The Trump administration has no more a handle on the pandemic than they did in February. The lockdowns were said to be a chance to flatten the projected curve so we could prepare.  Ok Peter it’s time to pay the piper.

He also blamed China for initially hording all the masks (like Trump cares about a mask).  China knew that masks, social distancing and hand washing works to control the virus. So why Peter, are we so dependent on China for PPE?  PPPPP, ever heard of it Trump?  Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance.

What about test kits? Why the DPA wasn’t activated for test kits?  Is the answer profit?

There may be two reasons why this interview that turned into a smoke screen.  One is obvious, the administration is in dire need of a foil and it’s China.  Blaming China for the virus takes the eyes off the problem he has with his delayed response causing economic calamity.  The Chinese trade talks on the tariff problems was a fluster cluck that Trump originally created. The talks stalled, and so Trump was embarrassed.  It was easy to blame China for the pandemic.  After all, the virus was traced to China.

The second is a cover up for the failures of not having testing available as promised.  The Defense Production Act should have been activated for test kits, and I still contend it’s not too late to go for it.  This indignant response is needed to cover for his lack of taking any responsibility?

All the rhetoric is to cover for the facts that Trump is indirectly and some say directly responsible for the deaths of an estimated 36,000 individuals in the United States, by his delay of only 1 week in March. 

On July 5, 2020, The New York Times ran the results of a study by Colombia University that said if Trump would have issued a lockdown for the country on March 9th, in lieu of the recommendation by the CDC on the 16th of March, the death toll would have been reduced by 36,000. That’s in just one week! What about the months Trump delayed after warnings in January? How many more deaths could have been saved?  In New York alone the study claimed that 22,000 could have been saved which is the majority of the 36,000 with only the 1-week notice.

The total interview was a preview for, and a test of, the propaganda Trump is going to harp on as a diversion for his delayed response and damage caused by the virus.  He is about to go again with the hydroxychloroquine gambit?  I hope I won’t be able to say told you so. 

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