Sweden's Approach Is Held Up By U.S. Conservatives As Gold Standard. But It Relies On Extreme Trust In Government.

Sweden, which has avoided the extreme shut-down measures of most other nations, has become a fascination for many conservatives who see it as proving their arguments correct that U.S. lockdowns are not needed. But there are factors in play that allowed Sweden to try this approach, where it would be unlikely to have similar results in the U.S.

Politico: Conservative Americans See Coronavirus Hope In Progressive Sweden

Conservatives have developed a fascination with Sweden’s hands-off approach to the coronavirus — an unexpected twist for a country that once served as a Republican punchline for Bernie Sanders jokes. On the surface, Sweden’s approach to containing the coronavirus pandemic is a libertarian dream: Restaurants remain open, as long as they adhere to social-distancing rules. Schools are in session. Salons are in business. And by some metrics, Sweden has fared roughly as well as many of its European neighbors, all of which have instituted much stricter lockdown measures. (Nguyen, 4/30)

Politico: Swedish Leader Defends Coronavirus Approach, Shrugs Off Far-Right Embrace

Sweden’s foreign minister says there’s been a “misunderstanding” in the United States about her country’s Covid-19 policies — which have been distinctly more liberal than the strict lockdowns instituted across much of the rest of Europe and North America. Ann Linde told POLITICO that Sweden is not a libertarian nirvana: the government has moved to limit online gambling in recent days, is closing restaurants that break social distancing rules, and has forbidden family visits to nursing homes. (Heath, 4/29)

Meanwhile —

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Borders To Remain Shut To Foreign Travelers As States Reopen

The Trump administration has no immediate plans to reopen the country’s borders after imposing a ban on foreign travelers from the European Union and the U.K. last month to slow the spread of the coronavirus, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. Mr. Pompeo told reporters Wednesday that the State Department was working with countries on plans to resume international travel, but declined to say whether borders would reopen before the summer. (Donati, 4/29)

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