Trump Raises The White Flag; White House To “Wind Down” Coronavirus Task Force

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 09: U.S. President Donald Trump exits after speaking and not taking any questions during a press briefing with the White House Coronavirus Task Force team in the press briefing room of the White House March 9, 2020 in Washington, DC. Also pictured, from L-R, Economic Advisor Peter Navarro, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,Secretary of Health and Human Services, Alex Azar, Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Robert Redfield, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. President Trump said he will hold a press conference on Tuesday concerning COVID-19 and other topics. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

If it strikes you as odd that in the middle of a pandemic, with many states reporting increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases, the government group in charge of fighting the disease would be folding its tent, you’re not alone. But it appears the White House is ready to move on from the disease, even though an insufficient testing and non-existing tracing system exist.

Former Obama administration health care guru Andy Slavitt writes on Twitter:

“It’s time to put on our big boy pants and turn testing into a real industry so that every American who wants a COVID test can get one. But instead of taking that on, the White House task force is abandoning ship.
“This is a time for American leadership to move from hundreds of thousands of tests/day— which traps us in a stagnant economy w high death tolls. And millions/day which would allow us to get back closer to normal, including having public events.”

But the “leadership” has decided to move on.

Axios writes: “We made a lot of mistakes at the beginning. And despite a month of extreme social distancing to try to hit “reset,” a hurried reopening now raises the risk that we’ll soon be right back where we started. The dissolution [of the task force] is yet another sign that the administration is ready to move on — despite all of the indications that we’re not prepared.“

NBC’s Meet the Press adds: Let’s be blunt about it: President Trump signaled Tuesday that he’s surrendering in the country’s fight against coronavirus.

Trump is surrendering at a time when polls show most Americans are willing to stay home. A Monmouth survey showed that 63 percent of voters are concerned states are lifting restrictions too quickly.

As NBC writes:

“What remains most puzzling to us is why Trump and his administration are so focused on reopening the economy rather than giving Americans CONFIDENCE to shop, eat out and return to their workplaces.

“Bottom line: The economy won’t return until that confidence does.“

Should Trump explain why he would remove the body that is doing the most to keep us safe? Is there any rational upside for society? https://t.co/MpkxaTk14s
— Christopher C. Cuomo (@ChrisCuomo) May 5, 2020

UPDATE: Trump announced via Twitter on Wednesday morning that the task force will continue with a focus on safety and reopening the country. Nothing on testing or tracing.