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Donald Trump's Timeline on COVID-19
2016: In response to the Ebola outbreak, President Obama creates the Pandemic Preparedness office at the National Security Council.
2017: The Pentagon prepared for the White House a report entitled "USNORTHCOM Branch Plan 3560: Pandemic Influenza and Infectious Disease Response." It outlines the threat of a Coronavirus pandemic which would lead to a shortage of ventilators, face masks, and hospital beds. The document specifically references coronavirus on several occasions, in one instance saying, “Coronavirus infections [are] common around the world.”
2017 Dr. Fauci says that there is "no doubt" in his mind that Trump will face an outbreak of a surprise infectuous disease during his presidency.
2018: President Trump disbands the Pandemic Preparedness office at the National Security Council--claims it is a waste to have them just sitting around when there are no pandemics to currently fight.
July 2019 Trump "reassigns" the CDC Epidemiologist Dr. Linda Quick who was embedded in China's disease control agency. She is brought back to the United States, and is not replaced.This leaves the CDC with no embedded people in China to monitor the situation if a disease outbreak should occur in China.
July 2019 President Trump cancels the USAID's PREDICT program--designed to monitor emerging zoonotic diseases around the globe.
August 2019 Trump abruptly cancels the maintenance contract on the National Reserves stockpile of ventilators. By March of 2020, 2,109 are out of commission as people try to figure out WHO is supposed to do upkeep on them.
December 19, 2019: First known (at that time) cases of COVID-19 are found. The true nature of the disease is still unknown.
December 31, 2019: China officially notifies the World Health Organization (WHO) of the disease.It immediately notifies the rest of the World.
Jan. 2, 2020: China notifies WHO of a new designation for the disease, COVID-19.
Jan. 14, 2020: China Notifies WHO its research has not yet confirmed human-to-human transmission. The WHO notifies the rest of the world that China has not yet found scientific evidence of human-to-human transmission.
Jan. 20, 2020: Trump says “I know more about viruses than anyone.”
Jan. 21, 2020: China informs WHO of evidence of human-to-human transmission. The WHO immediately notifies the rest of the world.
Jan. 22, 2020: Presitge Ameritech cautions the Department of Health and Human Services that America's reserve of N95 masks is reaching critically low levels, and offeres to produce them for HHS. The Trump administration declines the offer.
Jan. 22, 2020: Trump says “We have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China.”
Jan 24: Trump says "China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well. In particular, on behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi!"
Jan 30: WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the 2019-nCoV outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. (I.e. a Pandemic)
Jan 30: Trump says "Working closely with China and others on Coronavirus outbreak. Only 5 people in U.S., all in good recovery."
Feb. 2: Trump says “We pretty much shut it down coming in from China. It’s going to be fine.” This was said as part of a speech where Trump announced travel restrictions form China, However, as the disease was already here, epidemiologists agree that any such ban would be pointless. COVID-19 was alreay here, and thus keeping it out was impossible. The only possible effective response at that point is social restrictions.
Feb. 5: Impeachment over.
Feb. 7: The WHO warns of impedning shortages of PPE (face masks, gowns, gloves, etc, etc...) and warns the World to ramp up production for the coming pandemic.
Feb. 7: Trump sends 18 tons of face masks, gowns, and respirators to China.
Feb. 24: Trump says “The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA… Stock Market starting to look very good to me!”
Feb. 25: Trump says “CDC & my administration are doing a GREAT job of handling Coronavirus.”
Feb. 25: Trump says “I think that’s a problem that’s going to go away. They have studied it. They know very much. In fact, we’re very close to a vaccine.”
Feb 28: Trump says "Now the Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus, you know that right? Coronavirus, they’re politicizing it. We did one of the great jobs. You say, ‘How’s President Trump doing?’ They go, ‘Oh, not good, not good.’ They have no clue. They don’t have any clue. They can’t even count their votes in Iowa. They can’t even count. No, they can’t. They can’t count their votes.
"One of my people came up to me and said, ‘Mr. President, they tried to beat you on Russia, Russia, Russia.’ That didn’t work out too well. They couldn’t do it. They tried the impeachment hoax. That was not a perfect conversation. They tried anything. They tried it over and over. They’d been doing it since you got in. It’s all turning. They lost. It’s all turning. Think of it. Think of it. And this is their new hoax."
Feb 28:Trump said that coronavirus will “disappear” like a “miracle” while speaking at a press conference for his coronavirus task force. On Tuesday, he told reporters on Capitol Hill that coronavirus “will go away.” In late February, he speculated that warm weather would kill the virus and stop its spread. None of these statements are backed by science or infectious disease experts within his own administration.
March 6: Trump says “I like this stuff. I really get it. People are surprised that I understand it… Every one of these doctors said, ‘How do you know so much about this?’ Maybe I have a natural ability. Maybe I should have done that instead of running for president.”
March 9: California issues the first shelter-in-place and business closing orders.
March 9: Trump says "The Fake News Media and their partner, the Democrat Party, is doing everything within its semi-considerable power (it used to be greater!) to inflame the CoronaVirus situation, far beyond what the facts would warrant. Surgeon General, “The risk is low to the average American.”
March 10: Trump says “It will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away.”
March 13: Donald Trump finally pulls his head out of his azz and declares COVID-19 a National Emergency.
March 24: Donald Trump puts his head back into azz and says: “I’d love to have it open by Easter.” I would love to have that. It’s such an important day for other reasons, but I’ll make it an important day for this too. I would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter.”
March 26: The US takes the lead with the most number of COVID-19 patients in the world.
March 26: The US racks up its 1,000th COVID-19 death
March 28: The US racks up its 2,000th COVID-19 death
March 29: Trump recommends Social Distancing rules stay in effect until April 30.
March 30: The US racks up its 3,000th COVID-19 death
March 31: Donald Trump finally admits/realizes that COVID-19 is going to take between 100,000 and 240,000 American lives this year...
March 31: The US racks up its 4,000th COVID-19 death
April 1: US COVID-19 tests reach 160,000 backlogged tests, with a 10 day wait for results.
April 1: The US racks up its 5,000th COVID-19 death
April 6: The US racks up its 10,000th COVID-19 death
April 9: The US racks up its 15,000th COVID-19 death
April 9: By this date, 42 state Governors and the District of Columbia have shelter-in-place and business closing orders.
April 11: The US racks up its 20,000th COVID-19 death
April 12: Dr. Fauci acknowledges the death toll would have been lower if the Government would have reacted sooner.
April 12: Trump retweets a Tweet calling for Dr. Fauci to be fired.
April 14: The US racks up its 25,000th COVID-19 death
April 16: The CDC changes criteria to include deaths where COVID-19 was a major contributing factor.
April 19: Trump releases the first WH guidelines on stay-at-home/re-opening orders. It is general guidelines.
April 21: The US racks up its 45,000th COVID-19 death
April 23: The US racks up its 50,000th COVID-19 death
April 23: Donald Trump says that doctors need to test putting light inside the body, or injecting disinfectants into the lungs of COVID-19 victims, at the daily COVID-19 briefing. This came moments after Trump sees a chart describing how COVID-19 is killed by UV light and disinfectants. (THe chart is referencing how to kill the virus on external surfaces, but Trump doesn't understand that.)
April 24: The White House claims Trump's words on light and disinfectants are being taken out of context.
April 24: Donald Trump then claims his comments on inserting UV light into the human body, or injecting the lungs of victims with disinfectants, was sarcastic questions aimed at reporters. However, video of the exchange clearly shows him looking at Dr. Birix and asking her, and her giving a response.
April 25: Trump changes his story again about the disinfectant injection. He now claims he was asking a question of a laboratory expert. Again, this is contrary to the video.
April 25: White House spokesperson McEnany again changes the story back to this comment being taken out of context.
April 26: The US racks up its 55,000th COVID-19 death
April 28: The US announces its 1,000,000 COVID-19 case.
April 28: Trump blames the massive number of US cases on Obama, claiming that he (Trump) inherited a "broken test" for COVID-19. This is impossible, as COVID-19 was only discovered in late December of 2019, which was during the Trump presidency. (They cannot create a test for a virus that has not yet been discovered.)
May 1: The US racks up its 65,000th COVID-19 death
May 3: Trump predicts that the total US deaths for COVID-19 wil max out at between 75,000 and 100,000 deaths.
May 4: The White House predicts 3,000 more dead Amricans per day by June.
May 5: The US racks up its 70,000th COVID-19 death
May 5: Trump annonces he is disbanding the White House COVID-19 task force.
May 6: Trump annonces he is NOT disbanding the White House COVID-19 task force, but stresses it will now focus on re-opening the country.
May 6: Trump annonces that because it is "popular" he is NOT changing the White House COVID-19 task force, but adding people to it--with therm focused on re-opening the Country.
May 7: The CDC tries to release a 17-page guide for re-opening communities. Trump changes course, and rejects the CDC guidelines. States that we need to re-open quicker than the CDC would allow.
May 8: The US surges to Depression-era level official unemployment estimate of 14.7%. Using the calculation method used back then, unemployment actually has hit 23.6%.
May 10: The US racks up its 80,000th COVID-19 death
May 11: Because of internal WH staff members testing positive for COVID-19, all employees in the White House West Wing are ordered to wear masks and maintain social distancing. While speaking about COVID-19 testing, Trump has his own podium to speak at, and all other speakers share a different podium. Donald Trump refuses to wear a mask.
May 11: Trump says America has "prevailed on testing". At the press conference with Trump, speaking froma different podium, Testing Czar Brett Giroir says, "Everybody who needs a test can get a test.” The medical community, however, states it is still forced to ration testing and agree that the US is only doing 1/9th the testing per day it needs to do to re-open the country.
May 11: Trump continues to push for the country to re-open.
May 12: Donald Trump decides that because one of Pence's staff members have tested positive for COVID-19, Pence will not be allowed in his presence for the foreseeable future.
May 13: The US racks up its 85,000th COVID-19 death
May 14: Trump visits a PPE factory. He is the only person there not wearing a mask...
May 14: "We have the best testing in the world," Trump told employees at Owens & Minor Inc. in Allentown. “Could be that testing’s, frankly, overrated. Maybe it is overrated."
May 17: Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said that underlying health conditions, including among minorities, were one reason for the high American death toll. Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro added the government's own Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to its list of causes alongside China and the Obama administration.
May 17: The US racks up its 90,000th COVID-19 death. The United States accounts for about 4.25% of the world's population, but currently has about 29% of the confirmed deaths from the diseas.
May 18: A report, from the Urban Health Collaborative at the Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University, found the stay-at-home orders issued by Governors and Mayors likely reduced the number of coronavirus deaths by 232,878, and prevented 2.1 million people from requiring hospitalization.
May 18: Donald Trump announces he has been taking hydroxychloroquine to prevent COVID-19--a drug that is in short supply and there is no medical evidence does anything for COVID-19.
May 20: The US racks up its 94,000th COVID-19 death