DrLove
Diamond Member
Did anyone see Alex on the tube yesterday with Chuck Todd? OMG - To listen to him praise Donald's COVID response was the most sycophantic happy talk I've seen to date including here in USMB. So at this point, EVERYTHING has been corrupted. The Postal Service, DOJ, HHS, FBI (although Chris Wray still hanging SOMEWHAT tough) .. and ALL scientific voices including the FDA and the CDC have been silenced and their work corrupted with incompetent, unqualified loyalists running the show.
Also a great read from The Atlantic in a similar vein:
All this reminds me of a quote from a 1951 book that EVERYONE should read in the age of Trump:
“Totalitarianism in power invariably replaces all first-rate talents, regardless of their sympathies, with those crackpots and fools whose lack of intelligence and creativity is still the best guarantee of their loyalty.” Hannah Arendt - Origins of Authoritarianism
Heath and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar wrote a memo this week giving him authority over all new rules and banning any of the health agencies, including the FDA, from signing any new rules "regarding the nation’s foods, medicines, medical devices and other products," the New York Times reports.
Why it matters: The story further underscores reporting that health and scientific agencies are undergoing a deep politicization as the Trump administration races to develop a coronavirus vaccine, as Axios' Caitlin Owens has reported. Peter Lurie, a former associate commissioner of the FDA, told the Times that the Azar memo amounted to a "power grab."
Other outside experts believe that the memo could further hinder scientific voices. The CDC this week reversed course on a controversial policy concerning coronavirus testing for asymptomatic people, which was reportedly posted to the agency's website over the objections of scientists.
Trump's health secretary asserts control over all new rules
Azar's chief of staff said the changes were simply a "housekeeping matter."
www.axios.com
Also a great read from The Atlantic in a similar vein:
The President Is Winning His War on American Institutions
How Trump is destroying the civil service and bending the government to his will
www.theatlantic.com
All this reminds me of a quote from a 1951 book that EVERYONE should read in the age of Trump:
“Totalitarianism in power invariably replaces all first-rate talents, regardless of their sympathies, with those crackpots and fools whose lack of intelligence and creativity is still the best guarantee of their loyalty.” Hannah Arendt - Origins of Authoritarianism