All the President's Disinformationists

The coronavirus pandemic has been accompanied by a pandemic of disinformation, sometimes called the "infodemic."  In the US, while it would have seemed unthinkable up to 5 years ago, the biggest source of disinformation has been President Donald Trump (look here).

Trump lost the 2020 election, and barring an overt coup attempt may be gone by January 20, 2021.  However, that does not mean we should expect the infodemic to go away as well.  In fact, another big source of disinformation since the onset of the pandemic has been Trump's faithful followers, including politicians at national, state, and local levels in the US.  We noted the onset of disinformation about the virus propagated by Trump supporters here, including the case of Senator Tom Cotton (R-AK), who pushed the erroneous idea that the coronavirus originated in a Chinese laboratory in Wuhan. 

Since then we have noted many other cases in which Trump supporting US politicians have peddled disinformation about the pandemic. We present here some notable cases that have gotten attention in the news media, in chronological order by publication date.

Joanne Wright, candidate for US House of Representatives in California, Promoted Conspiracy Theories about Pandemic Origin

Sen Cotton's ill-conceived theories quickly inspired other Trump true believers.

As reported by The Hill, March 2, 2020:

A GOP House candidate in California has repeatedly tweeted conspiracy theories regarding the novel coronavirus, a fast-spreading flu-like disease that has spurred a wave of online misinformation.

The tweets, from Republican hopeful Joanne Wright, underline how widespread coronavirus-related conspiracy theories have become as even politicians tout debunked claims linking the disease to governments and public figures.  

Wright has tweeted multiple times over the last few weeks about the coronavirus, suggesting the virus may be manmade or even connected to prominent Democrats, the Los Angeles Times first reported.

In one tweet, from Feb. 28, Wright questioned whether Microsoft founder Bill Gates is connected to the virus, a conspiracy theory that has made its way from the fringes of the online ecosystem to the center. She also tied the coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, to Democratic mega-donor George Soros and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. 

'Doesn’t @BillGates finance research at the Wuhan lab where the Corona virus was being created?' Wright tweeted, earning hundreds of retweets and likes. 'Isn’t @georgesoros a good friend of Gates? Isn’t it always when @HillaryClinton tweets that fire and brimstone hits us? Check Gates Foundation and Clinton Foundation for stock sells.'

The day before, responding to a tweet espousing a largely debunked theory on the origins of the virus from Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Wright tweeted, 'The Corona virus is a man made virus created in a Wuhan laboratory. Ask @BillGates who financed it.'

Wright was defeated in the primary election, but other Republicans soon jumped into the fray.

Former Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX), Father of Current Sen Rand Paul (R-KY), Dismisses Coronavirus Death Rate Estimates

As reported on March 18, 2020 by Politifact:

Calling Fauci 'the chief fearmonger of the Trump Administration,' Paul wrote in a column on his website that Fauci 'testified to Congress that the death rate for the coronavirus is 10 times that of the seasonal flu, a claim without any scientific basis.'

At the time, Politifact said that in fact there was good, if incomplete evidence for Dr Fauci's estimate of the death rate.  The current consensus is still that the coronavirus death rate is approximately ten times that of seasonal influenza.

Fooling people into thinking that COVID-19 is no worse than seasonal influenza likely would lead them to think they need no more precautions against it than they take for influenza.  It also distracts them from considering that one reason that influenza is now not so much feared is that a relatively effective vaccine for it is widely available.

Rep Louis Gohmert (R-TX) Claimed Germany has a "Powder" that can Cure Coronavirus

On April 20, 2020, the Independent reported:

 Republican congressman Louie Gohmert falsely claimed that Germany is using a powder to help prevent health care workers from contracting Covid-19.

Earlier this month, during an interview with KLTV in Texas, Mr Gohmert claimed that health care workers were being protected from coronavirus by the substance.

'It is being used in Germany as a mist,' Mr Gohmert said. 'Health care workers go through a misting tent going into the hospital and it kills the coronavirus completely dead not only right then.'

'Any time in the next 14 days that the virus touches anything that’s been sprayed it is killed.'

This was nonsense

Head of the German Hospital Association, Dr Jörn Wegner, told Ms Mekelburg [of Politfact] that the congressman’s claims are incorrect.

'What your congressman said is absolute nonsense,' Dr Wegner said. 'There are no such tents and there’s no powder or magical cure.'

Note that Rep Gohmert had scoffed at wearing a mask to prevent infection, but then became infected with  COVID-19 (look here).

Deceiving people into thinking that effective chemical measures to eliminate COVID-19 exist may lead to them neglecting simple preventative measures that actually may work. 

Republican Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Mike Turzai Said Children Without Underlying Conditions Are Not at Risk from COVID-19

As reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, May 14, 2020:

 'Guess what, they’re not at risk unless they have an underlying medical issue,' said Turzai, whose comments came in a video he recorded from his Allegheny County home and later shared on social media.

Note that

Turzai declined to provide any evidence that he relied on when he made this claim.

However,

it’s true that children are far less susceptible than adults. But his claim that other children are totally safe is incorrect, according to a study published recently in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics.

Again, fooling people into thinking that COVID-19 is less dangerous that it is may lead them to neglect public health guidelines.

Republican Candidates for the US House of Representatives Promoted Trump's Use of Hydroxychloroquine to Prevent COVID-19

On May 23, 2020, the Daily Beast reported:

'@realDonaldTrump taking hydroxychloroquine to ward off coronavirus is a kick-ass move that proves why he is the bravest and strongest of all American presidents,' James P. Bradley, a Republican U.S. House candidate in California, tweeted. 

'You’d have to be extremely naïve to believe that none of these Democrats knocking @POTUS are also taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventative measure,' Errol Webber, a GOP congressional candidate in California, tweeted after Trump touted taking the drug. 

In an interview, Lauren Boebert, a Republican congressional candidate in Colorado running to the right of GOP incumbent Scott Tipton, criticized those who were quick to go against the treatment. 

'With the way the media hates President Trump, if taking hydroxychloroquine was truly bad for him, they’d be encouraging it rather than having a meltdown,' Boebert tweeted on May 20.

 Also,

In Congress, two sitting House members also promoted in media interviews their own experience with the drug, including Roger Marshall. The Kansas doctor is running in a crowded GOP U.S. Senate primary in the reliably red state and looking to win out over longtime Trump supporter Kris Kobach. 

He told The Wall Street Journal earlier this week that he and members of his family were taking the drug prophylactically.

'I would encourage any person over the age of 65 or with an underlying medical condition to talk to their own physician about taking hydroxychloroquine and I’m relieved President Trump is taking it,' Marshall told the Journal. 

Also,

A conspiracy-filled approach to the issue came from Josh Barnett, an Arizona GOP challenger in the state’s deeply Democratic 7th District whose chances at making it to the House are slim. 

He tweeted: 'If hydroxychloroquine is soooooo dangerous then why are Democrats so against @realDonaldTrump taking it? Do they suddenly care about him and his health? LOL NO! Its because it works and they don't want anything to fix Covid and rev this economy back up.'

However, the article also noted that by the time of its publication

By late April, Trump’s own Food and Drug Administration warned that 'hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine have not been shown to be safe and effective for treating or preventing COVID-19.'

Research on the drug has continued to be troubling since. A new study published Friday by The Lancet also failed to show a 'a benefit of hydroxychloroquine,' when it comes to COVID-19 and more alarmingly described 'a greater hazard for in-hospital death with COVID-19.' 

Note that Bradley, Webber and Barnett lost in the general election.  However, Boebert won a seat in congress, and Marshall won a seat in the Senate. 

Again, pretending that effective treatments for COVID-19 exist may lead to people to neglect prevention measures. 

North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest Announced Masks "Don't Work"

As reported by WRAL on July 8, 2020:

Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, who’s running for governor against incumbent Democrat Roy Cooper, said scientific evidence doesn’t support mask mandates.

'There have been multiple comprehensive studies at the deepest level held to scientific standards in controlled environments that have all said for decades, masks do not work with viruses,' he told a reporter for The Hendersonville Times-News.

However,

His statement overlooks recent studies, news stories, CDC guidance and the advice of one of President Trump’s top pandemic advisors. While face coverings alone can’t guarantee protection from a virus, recent studies show they do reduce the risk of spreading the virus. 

Clearly, deceiving people into thinking that masks have no benefits will mitigate against them using face coverings that may reduce viral spread and reduce their own likelihood of infection

Rep Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) Minimized COVID-19 Risk

Per the Intercept on July 17, 2020:

Between Memorial Day and mid-June, Texas’s hospitalization rate shot up by 36 percent, a fact that Crenshaw has downplayed. 'If you just hear 36 percent increase, that does sound like a lot. … In reality, it’s under 500 additional hospitalizations out of a state of 30 million people,' he said on his podcast. 'So it’s really not a lot. … We’re so far away from being in over-capacity or even close to it that it’s laughable.'

When a Harris County judge said around the same time that Texas 'may be approaching the precipice of a disaster' Crenshaw blasted her for 'pure and simple fear mongering.'

In response,

More than 100 doctors, medical professionals, and emergency room physicians in the Houston area have signed their names to a letter condemning Republican Rep. Daniel Crenshaw for spreading misinformation during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has been ravaging the Texas city hard in recent weeks.

Specifically,

Dan Crenshaw, on the other hand, has spewed lies for the past four months — minimizing the threat we face and spreading dangerous disinformation for self-indulgent headlines

Of course, people who believe Crenshaw's disinformation are less likely to take actions to reduce the spread of the virus and their own risk of infection. 

Former Kansas Secretary of State, then Republican Senate Candidate Kris Kobach Claimed that Death Rate from COVID-19 was Inflated to Hurt Political Chances of President Trump

The Independent reported on July 28, 2020:

Kris Kobach, who is running for a Senate seat in Kansas and previously served as its secretary of state, appeared on a YouTube channel and claimed the number of cases and deaths was a lie.

'I believe that the numbers are being cooked,' he said. 'The books are being cooked.'

During his interview on the show National File, Mr Kobach said hospitals were misdiagnosing coronavirus cases and repeated Mr Trump's claims that more testing would result in higher numbers.

'There are so many things that are happening that indicate that they are overstating the positive numbers. Of course, we've all heard about hospitals, they will test someone who comes in for a liver problem, or for an auto accident, and they test positive and they are – or people who die of something else, but they're also Covid-positive, they'll be treated as a Covid death,' Mr Kobach said.

'And of course, the fact that we have whatever the number is, five times, four times as many tests now as we did in March. And so, if you're testing a greater population, you're going to see a proportional increase in the number of positive results.'

Kobach offered no proof of his allegations of "cooked" numbers, and no evidence that these numbers were exaggerated has appeared since.  His claim that high numbers are mainly a result of increased testing has been refuted by later increases in hospitalization and death rates.  The claim amounts to the logical fallacy of the appeal from ignorance (also called appeal to ignorance), that is, per Logically Fallacious:  

The assumption of a conclusion or fact based primarily on lack of evidence to the contrary.  Usually best described by, 'absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.'

Kobach (and Trump and many others) implied that if we were to try less vigorously to find cases of COVID-19, there would be fewer cases of it.  In reality, there would just be fewer diagnosed cases.  People who had COVID-19, but were undiagnosed, would be more likely to spread the disease than those who were correctly diagnosed, and less likely to receive medical care that might reduce their symptoms or risk of death.

Kobach lost in the Kansas primary.

Republican Arkansas State Senator Jason Rapert Promoted Hydroxychloroquine as COVID-19 Cure

On August 31, 2020, THV11.com reported:

Republican State Senator Jason Rapert used his position as chair of a key legislative committee to hear from doctors who support the use of hydroxychloroquine in the fight against COVID-19 and to grill the state health secretary over the department's guidance when it comes to prescribing the drug.

'I've got people in this state, in my own district, who were given Hydroxychloroquine and it turned them around,' said Rapert of Conway, who co-chairs the Joint Insurance and Commerce committee.

He chaired a hearing in which hydroxychloroquine proponents provided anecdotes of patients who received the drug and got better.  However, there is no good evidence that the drug benefits patients with COVID-19.  Some people who got the drug may have gotten better, but that does not mean that the drug caused them to get better.

Again, conning people into believing that there are simple, cheap drugs that effectively treat the disease may lead them to think there is no point in trying to prevent the spread of infection.

Sen Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Senator-Elect Roger Marshall (R-KS) Claimed COVID-19 Death Rates were Exaggerated

First on September 2, 2020, the AP reported:

Ernst said she ... is 'so skeptical' of the official numbers.

'These health care providers and others are reimbursed at a higher rate if COVID is tied to it, so what do you think they’re doing?' she said to the crowd on Monday, according to a report by the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier.

 Also,

'I heard the same thing on the news. ... They’re thinking there may be 10,000 or less deaths that were actually singularly COVID-19. ... I’m just really curious. It would be interesting to know that.'

At that point,

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that the disease has infected more than 6 million people in the U.S. and killed about 185,000 Americans. Of those deaths, 1,125 were reported in Iowa, according to the state website at midday Wednesday.  

Sen Ernst's skepticism may have derived from posts from supporters of conspiracy theory QAnon,

In recent tweets, supporters of QAnon misrepresented CDC figures, stating that the government’s health agency had reduced the number of U.S. COVID-19 deaths to just over 9,000. Trump tweeted the false information, which was later taken down by Twitter for violating platform rules.

Of course, it would be easy for a sitting US Senator to see the best evidence available about COVID-19 death rates, and to get advice from experts in public health about such rates.  

So, Per the Iowa Starting Line, September 4, 2020:

Condemnation from across the Iowa medical community has been relentless this week in the wake of Sen. Joni Ernst’s suggestion hospitals are inflating the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths for financial gain. 

On  September 6, 2020, The Hill reported that then Representative

Marshall, who is a doctor, pointed to the theory based on the 6 percent statistic in a Facebook post Sunday.

'This week the CDC quietly updated its COVID-19 data to reflect the number of deaths from COVID-19 only,' he wrote, adding that it was 'only 6%,' according to a screenshot posted by KSNT.

Facebook removed the post, with a spokesperson saying it violated 'our policies against spreading harmful misinformation about COVID-19 since it misstates CDC data about the deadliness of the disease.'

It would appear to be unethical for a physician to deliberately spread such disinformation that might mislead people into thinking that COVID-19 is not a serious problem.

Sen Rand Paul (R-KY) and Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey (R-Clarklake) Claimed Herd Immunity is Beneficial

On September 23, 2020, Forbes reported:

Dr. Anthony Fauci slammed Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) during a Senate hearing on the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic Wednesday when Paul incorrectly claimed that the high number of infections in New York show that lockdowns don’t work, and when Fauci challenged him, noting the current low positive test rate in the state, Paul erroneously said it is lower because of herd immunity.

Fauci said Paul 'misconstrued' what happened in New York, adding that Paul has done so 'repetitively in the past,' and while mistakes were made, the state has gotten its positive test rate to '1% or less' because they’ve followed CDC guidelines—and Fauci accused Paul of “not listening” to what CDC Director Robert Redfield said about the infection rate and not understanding herd immunity. 

Ashish Jha, the dean of Brown University’s School of Public Health said Paul 'almost' understands the complex issues of immunity and cross-reactivity and keeps sharing 'nonsense that is largely incorrect,' while 'Dr. Fauci patiently lays out the facts.'

Again, as a Senator Paul could easily get access to the best data and opinions from top experts.  Again, Rand Paul is a physician, so it would appear to be unethical for Paul as a physician to be spreading such "nonsense." 

On October 10, 2020, MLive.com reported:

Michigan’s top Senate Republican lawmaker says he is in favor of rolling back many of the measures put in place by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration to limit COVID-19 spread and believes 'an element of herd immunity' needs to happen in the state.

In comments to MLive following a rally protesting strict COVID-19 restrictions, Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clark Lake, said he feels Michigan residents understand that COVID-19 is real, contagious and requires precautions.

'I just simply don’t believe we need to continue to have the oppressive mandates that we’ve had,' he said. 'There’s no business that I know of that will put their customers, their employees, their patrons, their families at risk.'

In response, as reported by the Detroit News on October 12, 2020, a group of experts including

Dr. Joshua Sharfstein at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health; Dr. Thomas File, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America; Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Dr. Ashish Jha at the Brown University School of Public Health; and Dr. Carlos Del Rio at Emory University School of Medicine

Wrote a letter

'If 'herd immunity' were to begin after about 80% of the state’s population has been infected, as some believe, then 6.5 million more Michiganders would still need to contract COVID-19,' the experts wrote. 'At the current mortality rate, this would mean ​more than 30,000 additional deaths — more than four times the number of deaths to date.'

So by promoting "herd immunity" as a public health policy in the absence of a vaccine, these legislators would likely condemn many people to die.  Such promotion of herd immunity may approach a crime against humanity, given that the definition of such crimes according to the United Nations includes:

any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack: 

...

Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.

South Dakota Republican Governor Kristi Noem Said Increased Testing Led to an Apparent Surge in Cases

On October 14, 2020, the AP reported:

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem on Tuesday blamed South Dakota’s recent surge in coronavirus cases on an increase in testing, even as the state saw a new high in the number of people hospitalized by the virus.

There are currently no open general-care hospital beds in the southeastern part of the state, which contains the two largest hospitals, according to the Department of Health. Hospitals are dealing with both an increase in COVID-19 patients and people needing other medical care. The hospitals in Sioux Falls do have about 41% of their Intensive Care Units available.

'We have triple the amount of testing that we are doing in the state of South Dakota, which is why we’re seeing elevated positive cases,' Noem said. 'That’s normal, that’s natural, that’s expected.'

The Republican governor did not explain how an increase in hospitalizations would be connected to an increase in testing. The state has also seen one of the nation’s highest positivity rates for testing in the last 14 days, according to Johns Hopkins researchers. The roughly 23% positivity rate is an indication there are more infections than tests are indicating.

Note that Governor Noem again seemed to be employing the appeal from ignorance logical fallacy.  Her use of this fallacy to deceive people into thinking that the virus is less prevalent than it is could lead them to neglect reasonable precautions to prevent its spread.

Sen Ron Johnson (R-WI) Claimed Wisconsin had "Flattened the Curve" While Cases were Increasing, and Promoted Hydroxychloroquine as a Treatment of COVID-19

 On October 21, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported:

Wisconsin on Wednesday reported a record 48 deaths from the coronavirus and admitted its first patient at a field hospital as U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson falsely claimed the state had flattened its curve of COVID-19 deaths. 

The Republican from Oshkosh contended the public had been tricked into 'mass hysteria' a day after state Rep. Joe Sanfelippo, the chairman of the Assembly Health Committee, maintained there is nothing more the government can do to combat an illness that had killed 1,681 in Wisconsin as of Wednesday. 

'Generally deaths are still pretty flat because we've flattened the curve,' Johnson said during a call hosted by business lobbying group Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce. 'We've gotten better at treating it.'

But

He made the comments just hours before the state released figures showing the last seven days were the deadliest of the pandemic, with 173 deaths due to the virus between Oct. 14 and Wednesday.

So

 Health officials don't see the issue the way Johnson does.

'Of course the curve has not flattened and we don't have the virus under control,' said Patrick Remington, a former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention epidemiologist and director of the preventive medicine residency program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

 Then, on November 20, 2020, the Journal-Sentinel reported that during a Senate hearing:

held this week by U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin, about controversial treatments for COVID-19, including hydroxychloroquine — a drug that studies have found to be ineffective and in some cases dangerous when treating the disease.

During the hearing, Johnson pushed a baseless theory that the medical community was working to deny patients drugs such as hydroxychloroquine because they were cheaper than other treatments.

However

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration revoked the emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine in June because of its lack of effectiveness and cited its potential for serious cardiac adverse events and other potential serious side effects.

Dr Ashish Jha, Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health

later tweeted, 'Today was a very, very odd day.'

He added that 'the hearing was a testament to how politicized science has become.'

'I shared evidence of studies that have failed to find benefit of HCQ,' Jha tweeted. 'Three other witnesses shared personal experiences. And suggested my testimony was reckless because it would deny people access to lifesaving HCQ.'

He added, 'I found myself defending evidence, doctors, and scientists. There are key issues we need Congress to be airing right now. Hydroxychloroquine isn't one of them.'

Summary

Once upon a time, politicians usually realized what they did not know about science, health care, and medicine, and so consulted with experts before making pronouncements on such topics.  Now they seem not to know what they do not know, and may delight in propagating rank disinformation for political benefit.

So, since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in the US, prominent Republican politicians have asserted:

- conspiracy theories about the origins of the pandemic (eg, it came from a Chinese laboratory, Bill Gates was somehow responsible, etc)

- that the case rates and death rates have been exaggerated, partly by "excess testing," or by health care professionals for financial gain, or by others to politically damage President Trump

- that unproven therapies actually can treat the infection

- but that herd immunity without a vaccine can be safely achieved 

All were false, and all mirrored similar disinformation spread by President Trump and his associates (look here). 

In the US, the pandemic is currently out of control.  Cases,  hospitalizations, and deaths are at record levels.  A major cause of this disaster is that many people in the US are refusing to follow reasonable public health guidelines, including remaining physically distant from other people as much as is practical, wearing a face covering when such distancing is not possible, and frequent hand washing.  Much of this resistance is fueled by ignorance, misleading information, and disinformation.  President Trump has been a major source of disinformation, along with his followers and supporters, and with hostile foreign powers and various anonymous sources.

Trump may be on his way out, but his followers seem committed to propagating disinformation.  Some of his most influential are Republican politicians, including members of congress, members of state legislatures, and various state and local officials.  All of them could easily have access to accurate information and expert opinion the pandemic.

Shame on them for ignoring evidence and logic, and instead spreading disinformation that may be increasing disease, disability, and death.  

It is up to all of us to combat such disinformation whenever we can, and call out and condemn its perpetrators.  History will not look kindly on them.  Meanwhile, there are lives to save.

 

Next Installment: How Can We Fight the Coronavirus Pandemic Under Political Leaders Who Enable the Spread of the Virus?

While the US continues to suffer from one of the worst outbreaks of the novel coronavirus pandemic to beset any developed nation, as we have discussed, President Trump and his administration have hindered pandemic management in the US and around the world. In particular, last month we noted what appeared to be a well developed pattern of behavior by the president and political leaders who support him in which they acted as if the were trying to enable the spread of the virus.  These instances included leaders purposefully avoiding wearing face masks and social distancing in instance in which disease transmission was likely, eg, government meeting and political session, and engineering crowded events in which social distancing and wearing of face masks were rare.

Only a month has past, but there have been too many new instances of political leaders acting as if they were actively trying to increase the spread of COVID-19 to ignore.  So we will again summarize new cases by category, and within categories, chronologically.

President Trump Acting Personally to Enable Viral Spread

Trump Attended Political Fundraiser Unmasked, Mingled in Crowd and Shook Hands

On this occasion, as is typical for him, the president avoided a mask and social distancing at the same time.  Per the Independent on July 21, 2020:

Video from an congressional candidate’s fundraiser in Washington shows Donald Trump mingling with a small crowd without a mask – even as he finally began wearing one in public after months of resistance.

Mr Trump appeared at a fundraiser for Madison Cawthorn, a young congressional candidate in North Carolina who defeated a Trump-backed contender in his recent primary – thereby breaking the president’s perfect endorsement record.

In Mr Cawthorn’s video of the fundraiser, held at the Trump International Hotel near the White House, he is enthusiastically greeted by various high-profile guests, including South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham – also unmasked – and the president’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani, who shakes his hand saying 'you can touch me'.

Mr Trump did not appear to be carrying a mask in either hand, and Mr Cawthorn himself was not wearing a mask either.

Trump, Unmasked, Invited Crowding at Various Somewhat Impromptu Events

Sometimes a Trump event starts with social distancing.  For example, per the Washington Post reporing on August 7, 2020, Trump attended an event at a:

facility [which] is larger than conference spaces in the White House, providing room for guests to spread out and safeguard against the coronavirus.

As the president spoke, he invited several guests, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), to speak at a lectern set apart from his own to observe social distancing guidelines.

However, at the behest of Trump, social distancing soon vanished:

after his remarks, Trump invited a dozen people to crowd behind him shoulder-to-shoulder as he signed several executive actions and handed out ceremonial pens. Four wore face masks, while the others did not, including the president and four doctors in white medical smocks.

he article also noted several previous events at which Trump managed to omit masking and invite crowding in a somewhat impromptu manner:

On a trip to Tampa last week, Trump held an event on the airport tarmac in which he touted the endorsement of local sheriffs in front of more than 150 supporters, most of whom were clustered tightly and did not wear masks. At the White House this week, he invited 21 guests, including two children, to gather behind him as he signed a bipartisan bill on national parks.

Then,

On Thursday, Trump visited Ohio, where he wore a mask during a factory tour but also delivered remarks to dozens of supporters clustered at the airport.

Trump "Press Conference" at the Trump Organization's Bedminster, New Jersey Golf Club Attended by Paying Club Guests Sans Masks or Social Distancing

Most recently, the Washington Post reported on August 8, 2020:

Just before 7 p.m. Friday evening, members of President Trump's private golf club here began streaming into a gilded ballroom by the dozens. Some carried wineglasses — few wore masks.

The happy hour scene just steps from the golf course was orchestrated by Trump, who decided late Friday to hold an impromptu news conference and invite his club members to gather indoors in defiance of state restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Then,

The pandemic, he told the room, 'is disappearing. It’s going to disappear.'

Many in the crowd behaved as if the pandemic had already vanished, forgoing guidelines on social distancing, face coverings and avoiding nonessential gatherings.

So by my count, President Trump held at least six events in the last month in which he did not wear a mask, most guests did not wear masks, and in which guests were crowded together.  All these circumstances favor transmission of the coronavirus, to Trump, and to everyone else there who failed to wear a mask while closer that six feet to other people. 


The Trump Administration, Family and Close Associates

Herman Cain, Prominent Trump Supporter and Former Presidential Candidate, Died of COVID-19 After Attending Packed Trump Rally in Tulsa Without a Mask

This is a tragic followup to a case we discussed last month.  The Trump campaign had organized and promoted a crowded campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma over objections of local public health authorities and physicians.  The campaign actively worked to prevent social distancing and did not encourage masks.  Several campaign workers and Secret Service agents tested positive around the time of the rally, and prominent Trump supporter and former presidential candidate Herman Cain, who was photographed without a mask and crowded together with other at the rally, tested positive afterwards and was hospitalized.

On July 30, 2020, the Washington Post reported that Mr Cain passed away:

Herman Cain, the former pizza chain executive who sought the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, has died weeks after testing positive for the coronavirus.

A commentary in the New York Times noted that Mr Cain had personally scorned the public health measures meant to control the pandemic:

Mr. Cain was eager to display his disregard for the experts and their warnings. Before the Trump rally in Tulsa, which local public health officials had urged the campaign to postpone, Mr. Cain urged people to 'Ignore the outrage' and to defy 'the left-wing shaming!'

There is no record of whether Mr Cain later was outraged that he became a victim of the virus, and of Trump's campaign to minimize its risks.


Trump Supporters in the US Congress

Political leaders who support Trump also have been eager to show their disdain for measures meant to slow the spread of the pandemic.


Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) Maskless on an Airplane

As reported by the Independent, July 13, 2020:

Texas senator Ted Cruz appeared to contravene an airline’s mandate on masks this weekend when he was pictured without one.

In a picture shared online on Sunday, Mr Cruz was onboard an American Airlines departure when he was seen unmasked.

The airline’s own mandate on masks says all passengers should wear one, unless when eating and drinking onboard.

Mr Cruz, who was pictured with a coffee in hand, was said to have 'not worn a mask once'.

'Captured today at 10:45am – Ted Cruz on a commercial flight, refusing to wear a mask,' wrote Twitter user Hosseh Enad with the picture.

He added: 'This was on an American Airlines flight — their policy clearly states that masks should be worn on the flight.'

Mr Enad said Mr Cruz had not been asked to wear one on Sunday, and was not seen masked.

Given the close quarters on commercial aircraft, social distancing may not always be possible, placing the emphasis on masks to decrease spread of the virus.  As noted above, Sen Cruz not also put himself at higher risk of contracting COVID-19, he increased the risk of passengers around him of contracting the disease from him.

Representative Louie Gohmert, Who Insisted on Attending Sessions Without a Mask, Tested Positive for COVID-19

Last month, we noted that Rep Gohmert (R-TX) often appeared at the House of Representatives without a mask and without maintaining social distancing.  On July 29, 2020, Politico reported:

Rep. Louie Gohmert — a Texas Republican who has been walking around the Capitol without a mask — has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to multiple sources.

Gohmert was scheduled to fly to Texas on Wednesday morning with President Donald Trump and tested positive in a pre-screen at the White House.

The article noted that Gohmert seemed to have ample opportunity to transmit the virus, for example:

Gohmert attended Tuesday's blockbuster House Judiciary Committee hearing with Attorney General William Barr in person, where lawmakers were seated at some distance from one another.

But footage from before the hearing shows Gohmert and Barr walking together in close contact, with neither wearing a mask. 

Trump Supporters in State Governments

 Republican State Legislators in Minnesota Refused to Wear Masks During Sessions

On July 13, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported:

It was the closing hours of the last special session.... there was a stark contrast: Every Democrat entered the room with a face covering; but not one Republican wore a mask. 

Some particular examples:

For state Rep. Jeremy Munson, R-Lake Crystal, a state mandate would not change his decision not to wear a mask. At a recent groundbreaking event, he showed up without a mask. When one was offered, he refused it. Munson said a photo from the event captures everyone else — including City Council members and Republican Sen. Julie Rosen — in masks, while his face is bare.

'I just haven’t seen a need for it,' said Munson, maintaining that his focus is on washing his hands and social distancing.

The Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka

said he tries to be socially distant, but has not worn a mask at the Capitol and generally prefers not to use them.

His rationale for that, and for opposing any sort of legal mandate to wear a mask:

'People are tired of ... being micromanaged,' Gazelka said. 'It’s a sense of controlling your own destiny.'

Of course, failing to wear a mask could control the destiny of people nearby, who would be at increased risk should the person refusing to mask have coronavirus, even without symptoms.

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt Got COVID-19 Infection After Scoffing at Pandemic Control Measures

Republican Governor Stitt, who had defiantly posted a picture of himself with his family at a crowded restaurant in March (look here), tested positive in July.  Per the New York Times, July 15, 2020:

Gov. Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma announced on Wednesday that he tested positive for the coronavirus, becoming the first governor in the United States known to have been infected during the pandemic.

But he

said that his own infection had not prompted him to second-guess his response to the virus, which has been less aggressive than in many other states, including some led by fellow Republicans. The governor has resisted issuing a statewide mask order, and continued to do so on Wednesday. He faced criticism early on in the outbreak, in March, when he posted a photo of himself with his children inside a crowded restaurant at a time when many people in the state were following social distancing protocols.

Gov Stitt apparently had continued to eschew masks right up to the moment he got the positive test, so he may well have spread the virus to other people

On Tuesday morning, hours before he received his test results, Mr. Stitt attended a special meeting of the state’s Land Office in a conference room at the State Capitol in Oklahoma City. He did not wear a mask.

Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, who serves in the governor’s cabinet as secretary of tourism and branding and who sat unmasked at a conference table across from Mr. Stitt at the Land Office meeting, said in a Facebook post that he was going to be tested after learning the news and was self-isolating at home.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson Derided "Dang Masks," Encouraged Maskless People to Crowd Together at Political Events

As reported by the Springfield (MO) News-Leader, July 18, 2020:

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson isn't always practicing what he and top state public health officials are preaching.

On July 10, a post on his official Twitter account instructed Missourians to social distance and wash their hands and added, 'If you can't social distance, wear a mask.'

The next day, his campaign posted photos of him mingling sans mask at a Missouri Cattlemen's Association steak fry in Sedalia, where he also lampooned the idea of mask mandates like those now in place in 28 other states.

'You don’t need government to tell you to wear a dang mask,' he said. 'If you want to wear a dang mask, wear a mask.'

Also,

At a ceremonial bill signing inside the Springfield Regional Police and Fire Training Center, a maskless Parson actually invited police officers and other dignitaries to gather behind him for photographs as he went about signing bill copies, and waved over more as time went on.

Utah Governor Gary Herbert Held Party at Governor's Mansion Sans Masks and Social Distancing

According to the Salt Lake City Tribune on July 23, 2020, on the day before a person who happened to work for the city Department of Public Health, walking by the Utah Governor's Mansion saw:

a harp sitting outside the stately residence. Illuminated by overhead string lights, caterers balanced trays of food and cleared away dirty dishes.

And,

The roughly 20 guests who were milling around the mansion lawn were dressed to the nines.... Only, some of them were lacking the trademark coronavirus-era accessory — a mask.

Also,

only half the partygoers were wearing the masks, meant to curb the spread of COVID-19. Some people appeared to have removed their face coverings to eat, he said, but others without masks were clustered in groups and chatting.

That pedestrian's husband took a photograph which

depicts at least one partygoer not wearing a face covering and another person whose mask was pulled down. Both appear to be standing in close proximity to other guests.

Note that Utah's Republican Governor had declined to issue a face-mask mandate at the time the party was held.

Summary

 As the US count of COVID-19 cases grows, now exceeding 5 million, while the death count grows  past 160,000, we continue to  see instances in which President Trump and his political supporters, including state governors and members of congress personally ignore common-sense, simple measures meant to better contain the pandemic.

There is growing evidence that wearing face masks decreases the likelihood the wearer will transmit or contract the infection, and the likelihood that any such infection will be severe.  Keeping people physically separate, particularly by more than six feet, and particularly when they are indoors, also decreases transmission in either direction.

Yet the leader of the US government, and many of his supporters in the US legislature and state governments continue to ostentatiously dismiss masks and social distancing, and to encourage others to do the same.  They continue to do this even as their ranks include more people who have caught the virus, some who have been symptomatic, and at least one who died.

Even after that death, per the New York Times, 

Even some of the harshest critics of Republican leadership said they did not think that Mr. Cain’s death would cause much reflection inside the party.

Evan McMullin, who ran against Mr. Trump as a third-party candidate in 2016, wrote on Twitter that Mr. Cain was 'the first senior casualty of the science denial Trump cult.'

In an interview, Mr. McMullin said he had little hope this was a wake-up call. 'I wish that was the case,' he said. 'Many voters who support the president live in a totally different, alternate information environment in which the news of Herman Cain’s death — his visit to the Trump rally, his decision to not wear a mask — won’t reach them.'

But as long as the political leadership remain unreached, not only will their personal actions continue to enable the spread of the coronavirus, they are unlikely to support effective policies to contain it.

Of course, such strongly partisan political leaders are not likely to change their thinking based on criticism from their political opponents. Yet most of the criticism they have faced has been clearly political.

Many health care professionals have been overwhelmed by the need at the front lines during the pandemic.  However, I have not heard a lot coming from those who have a bit more time to think, especially from the leaders of big health care institutions, directed at the political leaders who take the virus most casually.

I know many health care professionals are afraid of appearing partisan.  It is not partisan to speak up for common sense public health measures to combat a deadly pandemic.  If there was ever a time for us health care professionals, especially those in the most senior and/or leadership positions to speak up, it is now.  Who will hear the call? 

How Can We Fight the Coronavirus Pandemic Under Political Leaders Who Enable the Spread of the Virus?

The Trump administration has written the book about how not to prepare for a pandemic, and how to mismanage the response once one occurs.  We have previously posted about how President Trump and his administration have hindered pandemic management in the US and around the world.  We have noted the President's support for such counter-productive policies as allowing vulnerable elderly people to fly, keeping passengers cooped up on cruise ships in which the virus was spreading, and reducing testing for the virus (in March).

Furthermore, early on we noted  instances in which the President personally promoted events at which viral spread was enabled: the CPAC conference, a large indoor event, some of whose attendees later tested positive; and a meeting at Mar-a-Lago that included officials from Brazil, some of whom later tested positive (again, in March).  Later, in May, Trump visited a factory which makes N95 masks but insisted on not wearing a mask himself, and several of his top officials, including the Secretary of Health and Human Services, followed his (bad) example and also eschewed masks.

A few such episodes could have been written off as merely particularly horrendous bungles.  However, the pattern is now so well established that it appears Trump and his followers are systematically trying to increase the spread of the virus. We have now cataloged numerous instances in which they seemed to do so. In some, there was evidence that such actions actually enabled viral spread.  I will list them by category, and within categories, chronologically.

President Trump Acting Personally to Enable Viral Spread

Trump Avoids Masks but not Close Personal Contact at Public Events

Public health experts, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) under Trump have suggested social distancing, avoiding close contact with others, and wearing masks as key measures all people can undertake to decrease viral spread.

Trump, instead has frequently sought close personal contact with others and has conspicuously avoided wearing a mask.  For example, Trump continued to shake hands with supporters, including some elderly (in Florida, March 11).  Trump continued to show up at events without a mask, usually accompanies by other administration officials who also were maskless: in Phoenix, at a mask factory, (May 5) apparently in violation of the company's policy (per the Washington Post); at another mask factory in Pennsylvanis (May 14); in the Rose Garden, accompanied by Secretary of DHHS Azar and Secretary of Defense Esper (May 15); and in a Ford manufacturing plant, violating company policy and state law (May 21).

By decreasing the number of people wearing masks and preventing social distancing at these events, Trump made it more likely that there would be virus transmission there.


While Trump Avoids Masks and Social Distancing at the White House, His Staffers Increasingly Test Positive

Similarly, Trump has deliberately tried to reduce the use of masks and social distancing in the White House and generally in his personal vicinity.  Again, this increased the likelihood of virus transmission.  On May 4, 2020, Yahoo News reported:

As the country copes with the coronavirus pandemic, millions of Americans are following social distancing guidelines from the White House coronavirus task force to slow the spread of the infection: staying 6 feet away from other people, avoiding large gatherings and wearing masks or cloth face coverings.

But inside the White House, many of these rules are not being observed. There are regularly large events with unmasked attendees in close quarters — including inside the Oval Office, where some people have been allowed to enter without wearing masks or taking tests for the virus.

Although some people have their temperatures checked,

Not everyone who goes inside the Oval Office, the president’s inner sanctum and one of the most secure spaces in the West Wing, is being tested. For both governors’ visits, a pack of pool reporters and cameramen were brought in. Though their temperatures were rechecked before they entered Trump’s office, the press pool, which stood feet away from the president, the governors and staff, were not given tests. And in the crowded confines of Oval Office press scrums, while Trump sits apart from most of the crowds, the 6-foot distancing rule is not observed, with reporters and top officials packed close together.

Another report by the Washington Post on May 8, 2020, emphasized that the lax approach at the White House was at the behest of Trump:

Several security officials with executive branch experience said in interviews Friday that the White House has taken a lax and risky approach that, in their view, reflected Trump’s consistent efforts to minimize the threat from the virus.

So,

Like Trump, most of his aides, including Pence and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, have not worn face masks, and the president has huddled with guests at the White House for photo-ops that undermine the efforts at social distancing that do take place, such as seats placed more than six feet apart.

'This is a show of bravado. This is a show of ‘I got this. I’m in control,’ ' said one former security official familiar with White House security planning during past administrations.

'He’s tried to minimize this threat from day one. It’s the only way he can laugh in the face of this disease,' said this person, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to frankly address sensitive security matters.

Multiple anecdotes suggest that the White House is a permissive environment for transmission.  Various staffers have tested positive for coronavirus, suggesting that lax policies driven by Trump's aversion to masks were enabling spread.  First, on May 7, CNN reported:

A member of the US Navy who serves as one of President Donald Trump's personal valets has tested positive for coronavirus, CNN learned Thursday, raising concerns about the President's possible exposure to the virus.

The valets are members of an elite military unit dedicated to the White House and often work very close to the President and first family. Trump was upset when he was informed Wednesday that the valet had tested positive, a source told CNN, and the President was subsequently tested again by the White House physician.

The next day, Politico reported:

Katie Miller, a spokesperson for Vice President Mike Pence, has tested positive for coronavirus, according to two people with knowledge of Miller's diagnosis.

Miller's positive diagnosis for Covid-19 puts the potential threat of the infection squarely into the president’s inner circle. Miller serves as the vice president’s top spokesperson, traveling with him frequently and attending meetings by his side. She is also married to another top White House aide and senior adviser, Stephen Miller, who writes the majority of Trump’s speeches and spends copious amounts of time around the president, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.

And on July 3, 2020, the New York Times reported:

Kimberly Guilfoyle, the girlfriend of President Trump’s eldest son and a top fund-raising official for the Trump re-election campaign, tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday before a Fourth of July event at Mount Rushmore, a person familiar with her condition said.

Ms. Guilfoyle traveled to South Dakota with Mr. Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr., in anticipation of attending a huge fireworks display where the president was set to speak.

So it is likely that despite some extraordinary measures to prevent infection in the White House, such as multiple temperature checks and copious use of rapid (but perhaps not very sensitive) tests for coronavirus, the President's insistence on avoiding masks and social distancing is allowing spread of the virus, even to staffers very close to the President.

Trump Scoffs at New Jersey Quarantine Regulations

As reported by NBC on June 24, 2020:

The White House said Wednesday that President Donald Trump will not change his plan to travel to New Jersey this weekend despite a new order by the governor requiring visitors who have been in states with high numbers of coronavirus cases to quarantine for 14 days.

'The president of the United States is not a civilian,' White House spokesman Judd Deere said when asked about Trump’s compliance with the quarantine order given his travel Tuesday to Arizona, which has seen a rise in the rate of its COVID-19 cases.

Again, Trump demonstrated his intentional disregard of standard, lawful public health measures meant to reduce the spread of coronavirus.


Trump's Tulsa Campaign Rally: No Masks or Social Distancing, Multiple Infections Documented

So far, the most vivid and elaborate demonstration of Trump's push to make the US safer for the coronavirus was provided by his campaign rally in  Tulsa, Oklahoma on June 20.  That location was one in which coronavirus cases were already climbing.  The rally went on despite Trump's and its organizers' apparent awareness of the dangers of it leading to worsening spread of the virus.

First, note that the campaign required that attendees sign a waiver to protect Trump and the organizers from liability.  As reported by CNN on June 12, 2020:

Attendees of President Donald Trump's upcoming rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, must agree not to sue the campaign if they contract coronavirus.

Rallygoers are asked to RSVP to gain admission to the event and by registering, they must agree to a disclaimer that states they acknowledge the 'inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present.'

'By attending the Rally, you and any guests voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19 and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.; BOK Center; ASM Global; or any of their affiliates, directors, officers, employees, agents, contractors, or volunteers liable for any illness or injury,' the disclaimer reads.

The disclaimer proclaims that Trump and rally organizers were very aware that their event would likely lead to particular risk of spreading coronavirus.

Furthermore, local health authorities warned them about the risk, per Tulsa World on June 13, 2020:

Expressing concerns about COVID-19’s increasing spread, the Tulsa City-County Health Department’s director said he wishes the campaign rally for President Donald Trump at the BOK Center on June 20 would be pushed back to a later date.

In an interview with the Tulsa World on Saturday, Dr. Bruce Dart said Tulsa is seeing a 'significant increase in our case trends' that makes a large gathering like the rally dangerous for not only attendees, but the president himself.

Local health care professionals also added their warnings, as reported by Public Radio Tulsa on June 16, 2020:

Calling it a matter of public health, not politics, hundreds of health care providers have signed their names on a letter to Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum, calling on him to prevent President Trump's campaign rally planned for the BOK Center on Saturday.

'As our city and state COVID-19 numbers climb at a rate previously unseen, it is unthinkable that this is seen as a logical choice," reads the letter, dated June 14th and authored by Dr. Jabraan Pasha of the University of Oklahoma Medical Center in Tulsa. 'It has the potential to shake our cities [sic] infrastructure and stress our healthcare systems. It will undoubtedly cost lives.'

In case that was not enough, top public health experts on the President's own coronavirus task force also warned against the rally. As reported by NBC News on June 19, 2020:

Leading members of the coronavirus task force warned White House officials about the health risks of holding large-scale indoor campaign rallies and advised against such mass gatherings, according to two people familiar with the discussions.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, and task force response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx both vocalized concerns internally in the last week about the safety of holding a rally on Saturday with as many as 19,000 people in an enclosed arena in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Their dismissal was blase:

But President Donald Trump and his campaign advisers are proceeding with the event, which is expected to draw tens of thousands inside and outside the venue who will neither be socially distant nor required to wear face coverings. They claim attendees 'assume a personal risk' and 'that is part of life.'

Again, this response indicates that the President and associates were well aware that what they were doing would likely spread the virus.

Yet there was one final warning before the event.  As CNN reported on the day of the rally, June 20, 2020:

Six staffers working on President Donald Trump's rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, have tested positive for coronavirus, the Trump campaign said Saturday.

Nevertheless, the show would go on, but not before one extra effort by the Trump campaign to make sure there would be no social distancing at the event. As we found out in retrospect on June 27, 2020 via the Washington Post

In the hours before President Trump’s rally in Tulsa, his campaign directed the removal of thousands of 'Do Not Sit Here, Please!' stickers from seats in the arena that were intended to establish social distance between rallygoers, according to video and photos obtained by The Washington Post and a person familiar with the event.

The removal contradicted instructions from the management of the BOK Center, the 19,000-seat arena in downtown Tulsa where Trump held his rally on June 20.

The effects of the rally were discovered very quickly.  First two members of Trump's campaign team tested positive for coronavirus after the rally (CNBC, June 22, 2020).  Then it was the Secret Service's turn, per the Washington Post on June 24, 2020:

Dozens of Secret Service officers and agents who were on site for President Trump’s rally in Tulsa last week were ordered to self-quarantine after two of their colleagues tested positive for the novel coronavirus

The agents originally testing positive were part of the six staffers who tested positive listed above. How many other Secret Service agents may have been infected is not clear.

A Secret Service spokeswoman declined to comment on how many of its employees have tested positive or were quarantined, but said the Tulsa event has not affected the agency’s ability to do its job.

A few days later, a prominent Trump supporter who attended the rally fell ill, as reported by Politico on July 2, 2020:

Former presidential candidate Herman Cain announced on Thursday that he has been hospitalized with Covid-19, almost two weeks after attending President Donald Trump’s rally in Tulsa, Okla.

Cain was diagnosed with coronavirus on June 29, nine days after the president's rally, and his symptoms worsened and required hospitalization on July 1, according to a statement from his Twitter account.

'He spent the past night in a hospital and as of today, Thursday July 2, he is resting comfortably in an Atlanta-area hospital,' the statement read, adding that Cain did not need a respirator. 'There is no way of knowing for sure how or where Mr. Cain contracted the coronavirus.'

Cain, briefly a frontrunner in the 2012 GOP presidential primary, tweeted a picture on June 20 of himself and others at Trump’s indoor rally.

“Here’s just a few of the #BlackVoicesForTrump at tonight’s rally! Having a fantastic time!” the caption read. No one in the picture was wearing a mask.

Finally, the director of the Tulsa Public Health Department concluded that the rally likely made an important contribution to the surge of cases overall in Tulsa.  As reported by AP on July 8, 2020:

President Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Tulsa in late June that drew thousands of participants and large protests 'likely contributed' to a dramatic surge in new coronavirus cases, Tulsa City-County Health Department Director Dr. Bruce Dart said Wednesday.

Tulsa County reported 261 confirmed new cases on Monday, a one-day record high, and another 206 cases on Tuesday. By comparison, during the week before the June 20 Trump rally, there were 76 cases on Monday and 96 on Tuesday.

Although the health department’s policy is to not publicly identify individual settings where people may have contracted the virus, Dart said those large gatherings 'more than likely' contributed to the spike.

'In the past few days, we’ve seen almost 500 new cases, and we had several large events just over two weeks ago, so I guess we just connect the dots,' Dart said.

So despite multiple warnings from public health experts and health care professionals, Trump and his campaign held a intentionally maskless and socially compacted rally quickly followed by the spread of infection to staffers, at least one of his prominent supporters, and apparently a large but unknown number of the population of the city in which the rally was held.  Since then, Trump et al have held two large maskless and socially compacted events, one in an urban area with already a large surge in COVID-19, although it is too early to tally their effects.


The Trump Administration and Family

Ivanka Trump's Travels

Per the NY Times, April 16:

Ms. Trump herself has not followed the federal guidelines advising against discretionary travel, leaving Washington for another one of her family’s homes, even as she has publicly thanked people for self-quarantining.

In particular,

Ms. Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, who is also a senior White House adviser, traveled with their three children to the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey

On Their Own, Top Administration Officials Avoid Masks and Have Others Take Them Off

Even when the President Trump is not present, his top officials have taken it upon themselves to prevent the use of masks and social distancing.  On May 8, 2020, the Washington Post reported that Defense Secretary Esper and Veterans Affairs Secretary Wilkie stood with several very elderly, and hence vulnerable to coronavirus, World War II veterans sans masks. On May 11, the Intercept reported that Vice President Pence attended an event without a mask, and that business executives in attendance were required to remove their own masks.  This occurred right after Pence was exposed to Katie Miller (see above), so soon after Pence entered quarantine.

How ICE Spread the Virus

Days ago, on July 10, 2020, the New York Times reported:

Even as lockdowns and other measures have been taken around the world to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, ICE has continued to detain people, move them from state to state and deport them.

An investigation by The New York Times in collaboration with The Marshall Project reveals how unsafe conditions and scattershot testing helped turn ICE into a domestic and global spreader of the virus — and how pressure from the Trump administration led countries to take in sick deportees.

The scope of the problem appears large:

So far, ICE has confirmed at least 3,000 coronavirus-positive detainees in its detention centers, though testing has been limited.

And,

So far, the governments of 11 countries have confirmed that deportees returned home with Covid-19.

So members of Trump's administration and family have also undermined public health measures meant to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, likely enabling infection in some affected people.

Trump Supporters in the US Congress

Trump's political supporters in the US Congress, and in state houses and legislatures have also enthusiastically followed his lead, promoting a maskless and not socially distanced life, despite increasing evidence that their efforts are leading to more people infected with coronavirus.

Republican Members of Congress Refuse Masks and Social Distancing

Republican members of the US House of Representatives have repeatedly refused to wear masks during their official duties while indoors and when close to other people.  On April 23, 2020, the NY Post reported:

Republican members of Congress were noticeably reluctant to wear masks on the House floor Thursday, sparking a sharp debate with Democrats, who readily accepted the federal guidance.

As lawmakers gathered for a morning debate on creating a coronavirus stimulus oversight committee, the GOP side of the chamber largely left their mouths and noses uncovered

The leadership provided the bad example, provoking mockery of masks as a pandemic prevention measure:

Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) arrived on the House floor without masks, as did many GOP peers.

'Nice mask!' a colleague told Scalise.

'Thanks! I wear it for Halloween, too!' the second-ranking Republican said, laughing uproariously.

Those who did not wear masks included Reps. Jack Bergman (R-Mich.), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), James Comer (R-Ky.), Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), Jody Hice (R-Ga.), David Kustoff (R-Tenn.), Michael McCaul (R-Texas), Tom McClintock (R-Calif.), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Chip Roy (R-Texas).

Despite continuing exhortations from public health experts about wearing masks, House Republicans remained defiant.  As reported on May 28, 2020 by CNN:

A contingent of House Republicans continues to defy the recommendations of public health experts and Congress' top physician to wear face coverings to limit the spread of Covid-19, refusing to wear them on the floor of the chamber, in the hallways of the Capitol or when chatting with aides and colleagues -- even when they're unable to maintain a social distance.

Some of those anti-mask Republicans seem to have acquired coronavirus infections, suggesting that their deliberate avoidance of masks and social distancing has enabled the spread of the virus, even to those who advocated such defiance of public health orthodoxy.  As reported by USAToday on June 15, 2020:

South Carolina Republican Rep. Tom Rice announced Monday that he and his family contracted COVID-19, becoming the latest member of Congress to contract the deadly disease that has infected about 2.15 million Americans.

Rice, in a Facebook post to his constituents, said he and his family contracted the disease last week and were recovering. He joins seven other members of Congress who tested positive for the disease or who were diagnosed with a presumed case. But his case comes months after his colleagues' and comes as states push to reopen businesses and their economies.

And the defiance continues.  CNN reported on June 26, following up on a Congressman listed above whose state now experiencing a major surge in infections:

Texas Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert spends ample time on the House floor not wearing a mask, often talking with aides and lawmakers at length while not maintaining a social distance.

Asked why not, the 66-year-old Gohmert had an explanation that defied the science and the recommendations of leading public health experts.

'I don't have the coronavirus, turns out as of yesterday I've never had it. But if I get it, you'll never see me without a mask,' the conservative Texan told CNN Friday.

Told that health experts say that people who don't have symptoms may be carrying the virus and can unknowingly spread it to others, Gohmert responded: 'But I keep being tested and I don't have it. So I'm not afraid of you, but if I get it I'll wear a mask.'

Leading Republican Member of Congress to Hold Fundraising Event in Florida During Huge Virus Surge

I found one other example of a well known Congressman who seemed intent on holding an event that could risk further virus spread in a state already experiencing a major surge.  On July 7, 2020,Axios reported

House Minority Whip Steve Scalise’s PAC is inviting lobbyists to attend a four-day 'Summer Meeting' at Disney World's Polynesian Village in Florida, all but daring donors to swallow their concern about coronavirus and contribute $10,000 to his leadership PAC.

Why it matters: Scalise appears to be the first House lawmakers to host an in-person destination fundraiser since the severity of pandemic became clear. The invite for the 'Summer Meeting' for the Scalise Leadership Fund, obtained by Axios, makes no mention of COVID-19.

Trump Supporters in State Governments

Maskless Governors Went To Restaurants

Early on in the pandemic, despite evidence that crowded restaurants provided an ideal environment for virus propagation, one governor who supports Trump made a point of showing up in restaurants.

March 16, 2020, via the Independent:

[Republican] Oklahoma governor Kevin Stitt, has declared a state of emergency in response to the coronavirus outbreak just a day after he was slammed for tweeting a picture of his family at a crowded restaurant.

Two months later, two others made the restaurant scene, sometimes encouraged by Vice President Pence.

May 14, 2020, via the Arizona Republic

[Republican Governor Doug] Ducey’s office posted photos on social media of the governor stopping for lunch at Pita Jungle in Phoenix with a bipartisan group of legislators.

The get together was a show of support for the restaurant industry as eateries reopened dine-in service this week as the governor pulled back state restrictions in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

None of the politicians were wearing masks in the pictures. Restaurant staff appeared to be wearing masks.

The state’s own guidance for restaurants says eateries should develop standards for employees to wear masks around customers and coworkers.

May 20, 2020, via ABC News:

Vice President Mike Pence did something Wednesday that most Americans haven’t done in many weeks amid the coronavirus pandemic: He sat down for lunch at a burger joint.

The vice president held a photo op at Beth’s Burger Bar in Florida along with GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis to highlight efforts to allow restaurants in the state to begin reopening for limited, in-person service.

But,

Neither the vice president, nor Steele, nor DeSantis, or many others nearby, wore masks.

May 22, 2020 via the Atlanta Eater:

Photos posted to social media by WSB reporter Richard Elliott, AJC photojournalist John Spink, and AJC reporter Tamar Hallerman show Gov. Kemp and Vice President Pence speaking to the owners, staff, and diners at Star Cafe, and lunching on pulled pork and meatloaf paired with sweet tea.

But,

Despite the governor urging the public to face wear masks and to social distance during the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis, neither Gov. Kemp or the vice president — or most of their entourage — entered the restaurant wearing a mask or when conversing with people before dining, and social distancing seemed to be on the back-burner.

Note that since then Oklahoma, Florida, and Georgia have all experienced big coronavirus surges.


Pennsylvania Legislators Concealed COVID-19 Infection Acquired by One of Their Own

On May 28, 2020, the Washington Post reported:

Democratic state legislators in Pennsylvania accused their Republican counterparts Wednesday of keeping a GOP lawmaker’s positive coronavirus diagnosis under wraps for days, arguing the lack of transparency may have increased their risk of contracting the potentially deadly infection.

Republican state Rep. Andrew Lewis released a statement Wednesday revealing he received his positive test result on May 20 — a jarring announcement that rattled House Democrats who said they had no idea he had been sick or other GOP members had been told to self-quarantine due to possible exposure.

Lewis, whose last appearance at the state Capitol was on May 14, said he immediately went into isolation after testing positive and informed House officials about his condition.

In particular,

state Democrats were appalled that their Republican colleagues did not promptly inform them of Lewis’s positive test result or the subsequent self-quarantines of other GOP members, instead allowing them to potentially risk exposure by continuing to participate in person in voting sessions and House committee meetings. Several Democrats said Wednesday they only became aware of Lewis’s diagnosis from the media.

The connection between intentional behavior by the state legislators and their colleagues initially unknowing assumption of increased risk is clear.

After Refusing Masks and Social Distancing, Mississippi Legislators Acquiring Coronavirus Infections

On July 10, 2020, AP reported:

Packed elevators and crowded committee rooms. Legislators sitting shoulder-to-shoulder on the House and Senate floor. People standing close to each other and talking, sometimes leaning in to whisper, without a mask in sight.

Those were common scenes at the Mississippi Capitol in June — a month that saw a historic vote to remove the Confederate emblem from the state flag — and now at least 26 lawmakers have been diagnosed with the coronavirus in the biggest known outbreak in any state legislature in the nation.

That works out to about 1 in 7 Mississippi legislators.

Among those testing positive in the heavily Republican body are the GOP presiding officers, House Speaker Philip Gunn and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann.

Again, there is a plausible connection between lack of masks and social distancing, and then rise in infections.  Note again that Mississippi has been also undergoing a major coronavirus surge.

Summary


We have thus seen an extensive array of examples in which President Trump, his administration, and his political supporters in the US Congress, state houses and state legislatures have deliberately undermined standard public health measures meant to reduce the spread of the coronavirus and better control the pandemic.  There are examples in which their defiance at least was temporally related to specific or general increases in infection.  These examples occurred before and during the latest and now most severe surge of the pandemic.  The examples occurred despite many, many warnings and cautions by public health and health care professionals, and protests by political opponents.

How can we explain this apparently perverse behavior?  Given its duration despite warnings and pushbacks, it is hard to attribute it to lack of knowledge, miscommunication, or error.  One can never dismiss the possibility of grotesque stupidity.

However, at this point, I cannot dismiss the likelihood of malevolence.  As Jurecic and Wittes postulated in the Atlantic back in March,

As the former Justice Department official Carrie Cordero declared on Twitter: 'To invert a @benjaminwittes formulation, the Trump administration #COVID19 response might be characterized as incompetence exacerbated by malevolence.'

It is an inversion in more ways than one. In the original formulation of the phrase—malevolence tempered by incompetence—the incompetence not only comes second, but it mitigates the malevolence. In Cordero’s rather apt reformulation, by contrast, the incompetence comes first, and the malevolence doesn’t mitigate it. It makes things worse.

So,

[Addressing] the malevolence. President Trump’s statements since the virus first appeared in the United States have been wholly untouched by concern for anything except blame avoidance.

Furthermore,

He barely bothers to express concern about public health, choosing instead to wax indignant about how the virus is affecting his public image. This has led to some scenes that might have been bleakly funny if not for the many lives at stake.

And as Greg Sargent wrote in the Washington Post on July 8,2020:

Not clueless and hapless.  Malevolent.

Once we dispense with the idea that Trump remains 'in denial,' we’re left with a few interpretations. The most charitable is that Trump continues to have principled disagreements with experts over these matters, but there are zero indications he has any substantively grounded views on them of any kind.

A far less charitable interpretation is that he’s merely indifferent to the catastrophic consequences that are resulting from these failures — and will continue to do so — and that he’s prioritizing nakedly self-interested political calculations over any such concerns.

Finally,

Central to getting this right is dispensing with the idea that Trump is a hapless, clueless actor rather than a deliberate and malevolent one.

If he is right, only then will be come up with a real solution for a malevolent and now life-threatening regime.