As the number of Coronavirus cases grow rapidly in the United States, Trump suggests lifting restrictions enacted to slow the spread of the disease.
Trump also retweeted a suggestion some Wing Nut made “that urged the loosening of those restrictions in the name of getting Americans back to work, a sign he may be growing impatient with the dismal economic numbers that could threaten his reelection hopes in the fall.”
It’s all about the economy and Trump’s re-election, not We the People:
The president last week brought former head of the Council of Economic Advisers, Kevin Hassett, back on in an advisory role. Hassett has said the U.S. may have to consider sending people back to work at some point to avoid a Great Depression-like event.
And as usual, Trump had to attack the media because they’re all just big meanies and do not like him.
Trump signals an economic pivot on coronavirus shutdowns:
- Vice President Pence, who heads the White House’s Coronavirus Task Force, had signaled the change in tone earlier when he said the CDC will issue guidance today allowing people exposed to the coronavirus to return to work sooner by wearing a mask for a certain length of time.
Between the lines: Senior Trump officials, including the president himself, have only limited patience for keeping the economy shut down. They are watching stocks tumble and unemployment skyrocket.
- What’s next: At the end of the 15-day period, there will likely be a serious clash between the public health experts — who will almost certainly favor a longer period of nationwide social distancing and quarantining — versus the president and his economic and political aides, who are anxious to restart the economy.
