How Pres Trump can save lives, fix the economy, and win reelection

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SUMMARY: How the President can save lives, restore the economy, and get reelected. How the November election could be a fiasco. Second and third waves are likely. The appalling toll of COVID-19 on African Americans. Revealing cell-phone data from meatpacking plants. White House quashes a detailed CDC guide to reopening. What the post-corona office will look like. The one guy who found a better job because of the pandemic.

Dear Mr. President: Here's how to save Americans, get re-elected, and secure your legacy!

President Trump said this week that the coronavirus epidemic in the United States should never have happened.

He's right!

If we had responded better back in January and February, we could have controlled the coronavirus and minimized its damage, before it got out of hand.

Many countries —not just one or two, but many— are demonstrating that with a strong, fast, smart response, the coronavirus can be managed. The countries that are demonstrating this, including South Korea, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, many countries in eastern Europe, Germany, and Greece — have lost far fewer people than the US (even adjusting for population) and are closer to recovery than we are.

We can explain to ourselves ad nauseam why the approach each of these countries took (different in most cases) "wouldn't work here," but we should recognize as we do this that we're just making excuses.

But that doesn't mean we're doomed to a worst-case. President Trump still has the chance to rebuild the economy while suppressing the pandemic.

At the moment, the president is urging the country to reopen, even though, in many states, his own criteria for reopening have not yet been met.

His emphasis on reopening is earning plaudits from some of the president's supporters and others frustrated by the government's restrictions. It's also triggering criticism from those who say the president cares more about the stock market and reelection than he does about Americans' lives.

But here's the thing. The President does not have to choose between "the economy" and "public health," because he can choose both. The economy will not be fixed until Americans feel safe. And Americans won't feel safe until they see infections and death counts dwindling to near zero.

So, while the President is urging governors to reopen their states, he can also do other things to get a handle on the coronavirus and restore America to economic and physical health.

Namely:

All this will help the country get the coronavirus under control faster—and, in so doing, save American lives and restore our economy. It will also help make us ready to detect, fight, and suppress any additional waves of infection.

The President could also take one more step — a step that would help his legacy and leave America with an improved pandemic-management capability long after he leaves office.

He could push Congress to increase the budget and authority of the Public Health Service, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, and other agencies that can protect us from these scourges.

All this would help save American lives, secure the President's legacy, and help him get reelected.

So, how about it, Mr. President? —HB

Will Americans be able to vote in November?

It will take $4 billion to hold a safe pandemic election, but Congress has only appropriated $400 million. And that's almost the least alarming fact in this New York Times Magazine story about securing the 2020 election.

Another one: Scaling up vote-by-mail could be impossible, since there aren't enough suppliers and they don't have enough equipment to print ballots.

And then there's the nightmare scenario, where a state legislature could use the excuse of the pandemic to cancel the popular vote, and exercise its constitutional right to appoint presidential electors itself, essentially choosing who wins a state without an election. — DP

Second and third epidemic "waves" likely

If the coronavirus plays out the way previous epidemics have played out, we'll likely see a second "wave" of infections this fall and perhaps additional waves after that.

Insider's Thomas Colson reports today that German researchers see additional waves as a near certainty.

That's a key reason why, even as the US begins to reopen, the government should continue to aggressively pursue every strategy available for reducing the impact of the coronavirus, including investing in testing, contact-tracing, isolation, and medical equipment.

If there's a second wave, let's be ready. — HB

The shocking toll COVID-19 is taking on African-Americans

This week brings still more grim news about how hard the pandemic is hitting black Americans.

A study found that the 22% of US counties with disproportionate numbers of black American residents have accounted for 60% of COVID-19 deaths. The CDC reported recently that an astonishing 83% of those hospitalized for the disease in Georgia were black. And new research in the UK found that blacks there have been dying of COVID-19 at more than four times the rate of whites.

The pandemic is also economically punishing minorities harder. According to a Washington Post-Ipsos poll, 20% of Hispanics and 16% of black Americans report being furloughed or laid off, compared to 11% of whites. — DP

Cell-phone data shows that people from one meat-packing plant traveled to 48 states

Meatpacking plants account for many of the biggest coronavirus infection "clusters" in the United States.

This is a disaster for meat-packing workers and their families. And it has affected our meat supply chains, hurting animal producers, meatpacking companies, and consumers. And it's also potentially spreading infections to other areas of the country.

As Insider's Aaron Holmes reports, phone data suggest that people who worked at or visited one Iowa meatpacking plant went on to visit 48 US states.

The data do not prove (or even suggest) that any of these people were infected or infected anyone else. But it's a reminder of how interconnected we are and how much we depend on interstate travel. — HB

The administration reportedly "shelved" detailed reopening guidance from the CDC

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention prepared a 17-page document detailing "reopening" guidelines for specific types of organizations, including bars and restaurants, childcare facilities, schools and camps, employers with vulnerable populations, and religious organizations

According to the Associated Press, the Trump Administration is not allowing the CDC to publish this document. But if you'd like to read it, the AP has helpfully uploaded it here.

(I, for one, am grateful to be able to read this guidance. We taxpayers pay $7 billion a year to fund the CDC. On a per-person basis, that's about $21 apiece. It's nice to get something for that money!) — DP

Are you ready for a "post-corona" office experience? Check out what it will look like!

Studies suggest that the coronavirus spreads most easily in confined, crowded indoor spaces where there's prolonged exposure to infected people.

As Insider's Katie Canales reports, one office designer predicts that this will lead to significant changes in office design. For example, expect to see sneeze guards, one-way hallways, "socially-distanced" collaboration rooms, video conferencing within the same office, and more desk space per person.

The designer has helpfully sketched out what all this might look like. Take a look! — HB

One person who found a better job during the pandemic.

During the worst month for the US economy ever, a handful of people have scratched together new jobs for themselves.

Insider's Avery Hartmans profiles Stephen Walsh, who lost his restaurant work and invented a Zoom-based trivia business practically overnight.

A lot of substitute entertainment during pandemic is sad: restaurant takeout and online raves are pale shadows of the real thing. But remote trivia is just as good — maybe better — than bar trivia, since it moves fast, can be easily improved with music and images, and allows distant friends and relatives — including your introverted smart friends who hate bars — to band together.

Walsh is making more money than he used to, and he's even added a special late session for rabid fans in Juneau, Alaska. — DP

The Big 3*

Nordstrom will close 16 stores.

Here's what we know about which Nordstrom locations will be hit. It's a terrible week for retailers, as Neiman-Marcus filed for bankruptcy.

We asked chefs how to improve instant ramen.

And they gave us 13 ways to do it. Undercook the noodles. Add cheese or mayo...

In case you still don't know how to pronounce "X Æ A-12," Elon Musk's and Grimes' baby name.

Here's how.

*The most popular stories on Insider this morning.

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