Make Elizabeth Warren the Coronavirus Czar

[BeckyDem]

Trump isn’t up to the job of managing a crisis. We need a work-around.
By Jeet Heer
Today 10:54 am


If you judge Donald Trump’s performance as president by the lowest of low bars, there has been a slight improvement in his handling of the coronavirus crisis in the last week. He no longer suggests that talk of the virus is a “hoax” by Democrats to make him look bad. He isn’t glad-handing supporters in violation of Center for Disease Control protocol. He’s surrounded himself with experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci. He makes nods to necessary policies like social distancing.

But, evaluated by any reasonable standards, Trump is still a disaster. His daily press conferences are a farrago of untruths, a combination of outright lies and Trump misstating ideas he seems to barely understand. On Thursday’s briefing, Trump touted the existing anti-malarial drug chloroquine as a possible magic bullet, describing it as a potential “game-changer.” According to Trump, “It has shown very, very encouraging early results, and we’re going to be able to make that drug available almost immediately.” The FDA had to clarify that chloroquine still had to be tested. According to FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn, “That’s a drug that the president has directed us to take a closer look at as to whether an expanded-use approach to that could be done to actually see if that benefits patients.” Dr. Fauci in an interview described evidence of the drug’s effectiveness as “anecdotal.” In other words, Trump wildly oversold medicine that hasn’t proven its effectiveness in a scientific setting.

Trump’s dishonesty is only one reason he’s the worst possible person to oversee a crisis that could kill millions and wreck the global economy. He also continues to maintain a ramshackle leadership style, with family members like Jared Kushner holding ill-defined power. According to The New York Times, Kushner is running an informal coronavirus team that is vexing government officials. The newspaper reports, “Kushner’s team is causing confusion among many officials involved in the response, who say they are unsure who is in charge given Kushner’s dual role as senior adviser and Trump family member.”

Trump is totally and irredeemably unfit for power in this crisis. This should be obvious to not just his political opponents but also Republicans in Washington, who know better than anyone else Trump’s character flaws.

The current economic crisis gives Democrats a path to change the situation. Since Democratic votes are needed for any stimulus, the party has real leverage to force changes in the White House. And given the fact that Trump’s temperamental unfitness is well known, some congressional Republicans might also be on board.

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/warren-coronavirus-czar-trump/

[msongs]

1. british political parties have a shadow cabinet. dems can do the same nt

[Stevegberg]

2. Can they? Maybe they should anyway, since all of the norms have been thrown in the garbage by Trump.

[elleng]

3. I'd like her to stay in the senate,

but I'd also like her to serve as Treasury Secretary!

You're right, we sure as heck need a Corona czar, a tried and true manager (maybe with a science background.)

[BeckyDem]

4. Its really troubling and we do need to try and maneuver as suggested here someone

in that we can rely on. We have a long way to go.

[Fiendish Thingy]

5. You'd see the stock market settle right down if Warren was in charge

And the curve would flatten no doubt.

I know Warren is a patriot, and would accept such an offer. To bad Trump isn’t a patriot, and a coward to boot.

Maybe someone could convince Trump to appoint Warren; tell him he could blame everything on her if it goes wrong.

It’s so crazy, it just might work...

[BeckyDem]

9. We should try, at a minimum, for someone that can be relied upon.

[JoeKolorado]

6. Senator Warren

To put this very simply, Lizzie would kick butt and take Republican names. In addition to handling the Coronavirus situation like a chief executive should.

[BeckyDem]

8. I think so too, she would manage the players very well.

Welcome to DU.

[Hortensis]

7. Well, even if COVID-19 were to carry off Moscow Mitch and

company and power shifted over their dead bodies , shouldn't someone with extensive experience in epidemiological control be in charge, one of those who've spent their entire careers in it and risen to the top? Especially after what we've been seeing of political appointments of amateurs to run things instead of experts?

Fwiw, I'm also imagining we'd want whoever our best choice was to be in charge of all the agencies involved in all epidemic disease monitoring and response. Whoever headed up things specific to this one pandemic would presumably be chosen by and work under that head.

[BeckyDem]

12. Its management more than science background needed and she is tough.

[MoonlitKnight]

13. Warren and Porter

At the minimum they can manage the response and know what laws are already in place to utilize.

[BeckyDem]

15. Yea yea, I like that.

[Hortensis]

16. More: yes. Instead of: no. A bunch of others would be

much more qualified, especially stepping in in the middle of a national and planetary holocaust. That a lot of people know her name is not a special qualification.

We need to respect that expertise so wide, deep, and complex that we can't begin to even imagine what it is really exists.

Anyway, a putsch in the middle of collapse is a fantasy. Voters gave power POWER over the presidency, senate, previously the house (thank all the gods more changed their minds on that!) and many state governments to the Republicans. OUR party would protect that against those who'd destroy our democracy. Our Democratic team covered all the reasons they would protect our democracy and eventually the constitutional transition of power in depth during the impeachment trial.

Worst case fantasy, after collapse forced an extraordinary power-sharing deal, it would leave Republicans at least nominally in charge because that was, again, the will of the people. Republicans, amazingly, would still have duty to carry out that will, for the first time of course. Until the people voted next time on whether to keep it that way or change it.

[TheFarseer]

10. No

Ben Carlson or Ron Paul because they have Medical experience.



Of course I’m kidding.

[BeckyDem]

11. lol

Its one of the reasons I enjoy DU. People like you who know when to throw a good joke!

[Celerity]

14. ...