Today there are 81,000 new cases of Covid-19 and counting. Yesterday, there were over 81, 500 cases. Earlier this week I reported that the U.S. was averaging over 68,000 new cases per day. Now the average is over 80,000. Americans are dying at a rate exceeding a thousand a day, and, with the surge of new cases, that figure promises to get worse.
United States Coronavirus: 9,207,220 Cases and 234,114 Deaths - Worldometer
Trump has virtually cancelled the White House coronavirus task force, not officially, but in reality. Doctors Fauci and Birx are forced to find other means to advise Americans on the threat of the pandemic.
They have been replaced by Doctor Scott Atlas. Unlike Doctors Fauci and Birx, who are epidemiologists, Atlas is a neuroradiologis. He has no background in epidemiology, but he has one important qualification. Trump likes what the former Fox contributor says.
Trump lives in a fantasy world where there is no pandemic. According to our President, it's the fault of the media and testing.
“The Fake News is talking about CASES, CASES, CASES. Media is doing everything possible to create fear prior to November 3rd. The Cases are up because TESTING is way up, by far the most, and best, in the world,” our President stated recently.
When did the GOP become dominated by the intelligence challenged?
In any case, as expected, Atlas agrees with Trump. Naturally, that's why Trump hired him in the first place. Trump likes sycophants. That's why Fauci and Birx are gone. They dealt with reality.
CNN reports, "Shortly after joining the White House as President Donald Trump's pandemic adviser,
Dr. Scott Atlas launched a quiet effort that seemed counterintuitive to some of his colleagues --
encouraging officials to limit Covid-19 testing mainly to people experiencing symptoms.
"Atlas, a neuroradiologist, not an infectious disease expert, strongly supported a decision in August to revise federal guidelines to de-emphasize the need to test people without symptoms."
Atlas apparently was unaware that asymptomatic people with Covid-19 can spread the disease to grandma and grandpa as well as others. However, Atlas can be excused. As mentioned, he doesn't know beans about infectious diseases.
Of course, that is why Atlas is Trump's expert on infectious diseases.
CNN added, Atlas "shared his view with state officials, including Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and several others in Florida. On August 31, Atlas urged DeSantis to focus less on universal testing and more on opening the economy and schools."
Politico reports, "The Republican governor of the president’s must-win battleground state responded by
canceling all state coronavirus restrictions without warning, catching local governments and epidemiologists off-guard amid their own strategies to keep the coronavirus contained."
Bars, restaurants, race tracks, hotels, motels, etc all opened without restrictions. DeSantis virtually opened Florida up, which is exactly what Trump wanted him to do.
Florida today has the third largest total number of coronavirus cases behind Texas and California. Florida has roughly 900 less deaths than California. California has approximately twice the population of Florida.
Floridians could easily say, "Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you, Dr. Atlas. Your advice stinks, and we have a foolish Republican governor who followed it."