POTUS VIRUS INACTION

All presidents since Clinton have taken the threat of a pandemic seriously, to the extent they all had a task force looking into the possibilities it could hit the US.  Last year, Trump did 2 things that has slowed the pandemic’s response.  First, Trump disbanded the White House Pandemic response effort reporting to John Bolton.  The second was the ending of a $200 million project where the U.S. scientists and doctors were working with labs worldwide including in China to identify potential pandemics.  The initiative was called PREDICT.

  Now let’s explore what a real leader would do upon declaring war on any disaster, conflict, or pandemic.  Any military leader that wanted to win the fight would mobilize all assets at their disposal concentrating on how to mitigate any causalities at all cost.  The best tool to mobilize all efforts is the Defense Production Act for production and the Defense Logistics Agency for allocation and distribution. 

We are paying for the military to use the assets that will mobilize and coordinate the required PPE and ventilators.  The Department of Defense (DOD), under the Defense Production Act (DPA) can demand the private sector divert all assets and concentrate solely on this requirement, with cost type contracts.  The DPA has been used many times in the past.  Usually it takes the form of the classification designated and assigned to the contract. 

When I was contracting with the Navy there was an unidentified person from an unidentified federal department and with the apparent authority and the end user (unidentified Fed agency) asked us how we could meet an early delivery of a piece of significant military equipment.  The program I was working on had a component that had held up delivery, with a lead time of 120 days.  Within an hour, he had the part promised to be delivered within 3 days.  He applied the pressure by making a change to our subcontract’s priority designation.

The need is universal for PPE and venerators.  During a briefing by the White House, an admiral stated, the process that was to be used for those that want to purchase PPE, was the existing marketplace.  He stated that they (the military) were not going to interrupt the supply chain and explained the procurement process.  Currently each state goes thru a process

not unlike eBay and each state competes and drives up the price.  The supplier is able to charge what the market will bear.  This is not considered price gouging, because it is the market price in a normal economy.  This lets the buyer set the price avoiding the stigma of a company price gouging.

One company providing PPE, was touted as having been delivered to NY by Trump.  These items of PPE were delivered to a warehouse where anyone, including foreign players could bid on the items.  This stupidity is allowing legal price gouging.  The stable genius with a questionable economics background has not heard of economies of scale?  This concept shows that a single procurement for the total quantity, is much more efficient than 50 states, each of

 which has different requirements and deliveries.  The DPA would require all efforts, including 24-hour production and expedited requirements with the ability to drive all elements of the supply chain into full gear.

The middleman is eliminated with the DPA.  The military would go directly to the products manufacturing source eliminating any middleman.  They would get involved into every aspect of the supply chain to mobilize the company.  This includes immediately providing raw materials and any type of equipment necessary in the government stockpile, to assist the company’s efforts. The Defense Logistics Agency is responsible for the logistical efforts for the military, thorough the World.  They have the manpower and abilities to monitor and distribute as necessary the equipment and PPE to the needed areas.  We are at war and yet the stable genius is acting like Nero as the pandemic burns through the nation and we are still not on a wartime footing utilizing all assets at his disposal.

One must ask why the genius does not fully implement the DPA?  This could be that he wants to politicize the pandemic?  He already has.  Florida immediately obtained all requested PPE.  Florida has a Republican governor and is a required state necessary for him to be reelected.  Another potential is the genius of having the ability to pick and choose winners and losers, granting contracts and pointing to where he wants spending.  He has tried to make it a war using civilians and corporations.  You don’t fight a war without trained personnel fighting the war.  The Military knows how to fight, civilians know how to make products and will muddle thru without the urgency necessary to win.  Trump has the propensity to make some type political advantage from a crisis.  This is a bad look.  His inaction is alarming and has the potential for unnecessary deaths.