Tag: pandemic

Trump is misrepresenting coronavirus data again, and it’s extremely dangerous

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report released last week has quickly become yet another cause for public controversy and confusion. Why? Because the coronavirus data — which showed that 94% of people who die of COVID-19 also have preexisting conditions — has been widely misinterpreted by many (including, of course, our President).

For those who egregiously assert that COVID-19 deaths are overreported, this served as evidence that most of the people who died after being infected with coronavirus were actually already sick beforehand and that COVID-19 itself has only actually killed only around 9,000 people in the US. Here’s everything you need to know to remain on the logical side of this conversation.

The report released by the CDC was a breakdown of COVID-19 fatalities in the U.S. from February to August, based on death certificates. First of all, this data is considered “provisional,” because these counts may not match counts from other sources, such as data from county health departments, the CDC stated in the report. That doesn’t mean the information is irrelevant, it just means that it’s subject to change. The CDC considers death certificates to be reliable sources of information because they include demographic details that state reporting agencies don’t, which makes them useful in figuring out what other factors (e.g.: like age, race, and underlying health conditions) may have contributed to a person’s death. Continue reading.

‘White House cover-up’: New report shows Trump and Pence withheld truth about COVID-19 as they spread lies

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As President Donald Trump and administration officials have been publicly downplaying the Covid-19 crisis and even predicting its imminent disappearance over the past several months, the White House task force formed to coordinate the federal pandemic response has simultaneously been issuing dire assessments of the nation’s fight against the pandemic behind the scenes.

Those assessments were kept secret from the public until Monday, when the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis released a trove of task force reports dated between June 23 and August 9 that highlight the extent to which Trump’s public proclamations about the Covid-19 crisis have diverged from the findings of experts operating in the White House.

“The task force reports released today show the White House has known since June that coronavirus cases were surging across the country and many states were becoming dangerous ‘red zones’ where the virus was spreading fast,” said Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), chairman of the subcommittee. Continue reading.

Betsy DeVos actually says the pandemic has been a ‘good thing’ for American schools

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On the heels of two federal judges halting a controversial rule that allows private schools to get more Covid-19 relief funding than Congress intended, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said Friday that she believes the viral pandemic has been a “good thing” for the nation’s education system, a comment that quickly drew criticism from Democrats and public education advocates.

“Betsy DeVos calling Covid-19 a ‘good thing’ for our schools just goes to show you how divorced this administration is from reality,” the Michigan State Democratic Party—of Devos’ home state—tweeted. “Let’s not forget: Millions of kids are forced to stay home from school because Trump failed to handle the virus.”

DeVos made the comment in a Friday interview aired on SiriusXM while discussing how the pandemic has affected the nation’s schools. She claimed the pandemic—which caused teachers nationwide to switch to emergency remote learning plans—has shown that the U.S. education system is “static” and unable to adjust to changing circumstances. Continue reading.

Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Update: September 2, 2020

September 2, 2020

Updates from the Governor

Today, Governor Tim Walz announced that teachers, school staff, and childcare providers across the state have received access to their free COVID-19 saliva test, totaling more than 250,000 tests. The saliva tests are part of the Safe Learning Plan for the 2020-21 School Year and consistent with Governor Walz and Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan’s commitment to providing access to COVID-19 testing for Minnesotans working in child care and prekindergarten to grade 12 schools.

“As a classroom teacher for more than 20 years and a parent of a child in public schools, I know that a safe classroom is the foundation for learning,” said Governor Walz. “Those educating and caring for Minnesota’s next generation deserve the peace of mind that these COVID-19 tests will provide.”

“All families in our state, including our littlest Minnesotans, want to know their teachers, school nutrition workers, and child care staff are supported. This means if they are exposed to COVID-19 as a frontline worker, we work to make sure they have access to testing,” said Lt Governor Flanagan. “Our goal is to create safe in-person learning for as many children as possible, and saliva tests are one piece of the puzzle to support that plan.”

Continue reading “Gov. Walz and Lt. Gov. Flanagan Update: September 2, 2020”

US surpasses 6 million coronavirus cases nationwide

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The United States has passed six million confirmed cases of the coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The country has also passed 183,000 deaths nationwide.

President Trump and his 2020 Democratic opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, have battled for months over the U.S.’s coronavirus response, with allies of the Democratic nominee hammering the administration over the U.S.’s status as the country with the most confirmed COVID-19 cases in the world.

In July, Biden accused Trump of giving up on the U.S.’s efforts to control the disease’s spread, claiming that the president “raised the white flag.” Continue reading.

The Minnesota GOP’s Maskless Campaigning Puts Lives At Risk

SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA –  Today, DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin held a press conference to criticize the Minnesota Republican Party and the Trump campaign for putting people’s lives at risk by holding events indoors, in close quarters, with few if any masks (examples are presented starting at 4:30 into the press conference). 

A video of the press can be viewed here and downloaded here. 
A copy of the slide show from the press conference can be found here.

The Minnesota GOP and Trump campaign even embarked on a tour of the state of Minnesota, which risked exposing Minnesotans to a deadly pandemic that has killed over 180,000 Americans and whose infection rates are growing here in Minnesota. Here’s what today’s speakers said:

“The plain truth here is that Minnesota Republicans and the Trump campaign are putting people’s lives at risk to win political campaigns,” said DFL Party Chairman Ken Martin. “The Minnesota Republican Party’s unsafe events could be spreading COVID-19 across our state, landing people in the hospital, and even killing them. If Minnesota Republican events have not caused serious harm, it is only because their fellow Minnesotans are taking this threat seriously and making the sacrifices necessary to save lives.”

Continue reading “The Minnesota GOP’s Maskless Campaigning Puts Lives At Risk”

U.S. Coronavirus Cases Top 6 Million

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The jump in infections comes as the daily rate continues to decline. New Delhi is reopening its subway, even as India sets global records for new cases.

Twenty-two days.

It took more than three months for the United States to reach one million coronavirus cases after reporting its first confirmed infection, but less than a third of that time to notch the latest million-case leap.

On Sunday, the United States hit yet another milestone, with six million reported cases, according to a New York Times database. Continue reading.

Shutdown politics set to collide with coronavirus aid

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The odds are rising that any deal on a fifth coronavirus relief package will be tied to legislation to prevent a government shutdown.

After weeks of stalemated talks, the timeline for the two fights have all but merged: The House is set to leave until after the election by Oct. 2, giving lawmakers only a matter of weeks to get a deal on another coronavirus bill. And government agencies cannot run when the next fiscal year begins on Oct. 1 without new funding from Congress. 

Tying the two together would set up a high-stakes election-year battle, combining the threat of a shutdown with help for roughly 30 million Americans out of work since the spread of the coronavirus that has rattled the economy and killed more than 180,000 people in the United States.  Continue reading.

Kitchen Table Conversation with Sen. Harris, Sen. Smith, & Lieutenant Governor Flanagan

On Sept 2nd, Sen. Harris joins Sen. Tina Smith and Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan for a conversation with Senator Bobby Joe Champion, Rep. Rena Moran, and Minnesotans from the Twin Cities about the challenges they are facing with the return to school during the COVID-19 pandemic.

More information and RSVP here.

Anatomy of a man-made disaster: Here are 595 hard facts about Trump’s abysmal COVID-19 response

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Crises have a way of sorting the good presidents from the bad.

Historians rank Abe Lincoln and Franklin Delano Roosevelt among the top three presidents for their handling of the Civil War, the Great Depression, and World War II.

By contrast, the string of catastrophes that trailed George W. Bush, from 9/11 to Iraq to Hurricane Katrina to his obliviousness to warning signs in the housing market before the 2008 crash guarantee that he will have a permanent place in the bottom tier of presidents.

Also certain to be at or near the bottom of that list is Donald Trump. Continue reading.