Perspectives: Fauci’s Right To Defend Health Experts After Being Attacked; Could Walmart Make The Difference On Mask Compliance?
Editorial pages express views about effective leadership -- and Dr. Anthony Fauci -- during the pandemic.
The Washington Post:
Fauci To White House: Telling The Truth Is In Trump’s Interests
One of the strangest side dramas of the Trump era has been the sight of certain allies trying to get him to recognize what’s right for the country by persuading him that doing so is good for him personally. After all, the former is irrelevant to him, and the latter is the only language he understands. For instance, Jeff Sessions tried to get President Trump to stop raging at him for recusing himself from the Russia investigation as attorney general by arguing that following the law had resulted in Trump’s exoneration in the probe (which is nonsense, but it was a good try). But this didn’t calm Trump’s sense of betrayal. Now Sessions’s disloyalty has cost him the Alabama Senate primary. Anthony S. Fauci is now trying something similar. (Greg Sargent, 7/15)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump’s Virus Non-Message
President Trump’s coronavirus management ratings have been plummeting (67% disapproved in an ABC/Ipsos poll last week) and if a better public-relations plan is in the works, it’s not apparent. Wednesday’s news on this front was an op-ed by Peter Navarro, a top economic adviser, attacking the judgment of Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health. The White House formally disavowed the op-ed, but it came after the White House social-media director posted an anti-Fauci cartoon on Sunday. The point is not that Dr. Fauci has been right about everything—the now-reversed early guidance against masks, in particular, hurt public confidence in health experts. Nor should the doctor set virus policy, which is up to elected representatives. The problem is that the White House seems to have given up on projecting any consistent virus message, and the descent into internal sniping amplifies a perception of dysfunction that is politically damaging. (7/15)
Bloomberg:
Walmart Covid-19 Mask Move May Be Tipping Point For America
Politics have been getting in the way of Americans broadly adopting a crucial preventative health measure: Wearing a mask in public to curb the spread of Covid-19. Now, though, the experts that have been urging that practice have an enormously powerful ally in Walmart Inc.The big-box retailing giant said Wednesday it would require customers at its eponymous stores and Sam’s Club chain to wear face coverings. While some 65% of its locations were already doing this to comply with local regulations, it will make it mandatory at all stores nationwide beginning July 20. (Sarah Halzack, 7/15)
CNN:
As Trump Refuses To Lead, America Tries To Save Itself
President Donald Trump isn't leading America much as its pandemic worsens. But that's not stopping Walmart -- along with Kroger, Kohl's, and city and state leaders and officials -- from making the tough decisions that the President has shirked. Given Trump's approach, if the country is to exit the building disaster without many more thousands dead, it will fall to governors, mayors, college presidents and school principals, teachers and grocery store managers to execute plans balancing public health with the need for life to go on. (Stephen Collinson, 7/16)
Bloomberg:
Rhode Island's Gina Raimondo Leads The Way On Covid-19 Response
Sometimes, when I’m particularly discouraged about how the U.S. is losing the battle against the coronavirus, I daydream about how much better off we’d be if Gina Raimondo, the hard-charging two-term governor of Rhode Island, were the one leading the nation’s response to the pandemic instead of Mike Pence. She has wrestled Covid-19 to the ground in her state and demonstrated ideas and resolve that could help guide the rest of the country in moving forward. As a native Rhode Islander, I had long admired her penchant for solving difficult problems. (Joe Nocera, 7/13)
New England Journal of Medicine:
WHO’s Next — The United States And The World Health Organization
Suppose a large forest fire hits California. Millions of acres are burning, and many towns are threatened. The Forest Service firefighters are cutting breaks and dropping water from helicopters. They plan their strategy using weather models that predict which way wind patterns will push the fire. Unfortunately, the models are imperfect. The wind turns in an unexpected direction. As a result, several towns are destroyed, and there are billions of dollars in damage.What’s the proper response to such a disaster? If you were the current U.S. government, you would shut down the Forest Service in the midst of the fire. (Barry R. Bloom, Paul E. Farmer, and Eric J. Rubin, M.D., 7/15)
