Actually, this is a pretty clever strategy in view of the growing impatience of the citizens in the Corona crisis: express loudly and audibly your general willingness to take back the restrictions on the economy, develop a scientifically supported three-step plan, such as this return to normalcy could succeed – and then leave it to the local heads of government to make the ultimate decision as to whether the time in their states is ready for the exit.
[Ifyouwanttohaveallthelatestdevelopmentsonthecoronaviruscrisisliveonyourmobilephonewerecommendourcompletelyrenewedapp[WennSiealleaktuellenEntwicklungenzurCoronavirus-KriseliveaufIhrHandyhabenwollenempfehlenwir IhnenunsererunderneuerteAppdieSiehere for Apple devices can download and here for Android devices.]
This is exactly the “guidelines” with which US President Donald Trump announced the “next front in our war” on Thursday evening (local time). And after claiming for days that he had “all-encompassing power” on the relaxation of corona protection measures, he made it clear that he would not blame him if his country’s possibly premature reopening went wrong. So if the infection numbers suddenly skyrocket again and the next, possibly even harder “lockdown” threatens.
But he also looks for guilty parties as a precaution if the economic situation continues to deteriorate dramatically – and severely reduces his chances of re-election in November.
Three-step plan on 18 pages
The Coronavirus Task Force wrote down on 18 pages how things should proceed in the USA. The plan provides for a major return to normal when certain criteria are met in states or regions. Thinly populated states where the corona virus is not a problem could lift the restrictions “tomorrow”, so on Friday, Trump said. If you want.
[Withthenewsletter”Twenty/Twenty”ourUSquintetChristophvonMarschallAnnaSauerbreyJulianeSchäubleMalteLehmingandTilmanSchröteraccompanyyoueveryThursdayonthewaytothepresidentialelectionHereyoucanregisterforfree:[MitdemNewsletter„Twenty/Twenty“begleitetunserUS-QuintettChristophvonMarschallAnnaSauerbreyJulianeSchäubleMalteLehmingundTilmanSchröterSiejedenDonnerstagaufdemWegzurPräsidentschaftswahlHiergehteszurkostenlosenAnmeldung:tagesspiegel.de/twentytwenty]
“We won’t open everything at once,” the president said. Some states would be more likely to relax restrictions than others. Their governors would have to direct this process, not the White House.
“If they have to stay closed, we will allow them to do so. If they believe it is time to open, we will give them this freedom and the guideline to accomplish these tasks.”
Trump warns of the dangers of continued closure
At the same time, Trump also raised concerns that the USA could face major economic, social and health damage if it were shut down for a long time. This could increase drug and alcohol abuse, and suicide and heart disease could increase.
The president then first discussed his plan with the governors, with whom he had repeatedly grappled over the past few days with the question of who ultimately had the competence to relax or continue to take measures to curb the pandemic – such as exit restrictions and business closures to let. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had commented on Trump’s claim that in the end he could always decide as president, that there was no king in America.
However, the pressure to start economic life again as soon as possible increases every week when millions of new unemployed find their way into official statistics. More than 22 million people have registered as unemployed in the past four weeks, an unprecedented dimension. Companies are facing bankruptcy or are already bankrupt, big and small, all over the country. Unemployment also threatens social decline for many Americans. There have already been isolated protests in some states against the tough conditions – albeit primarily from Trump supporters.
Many states are yet to peak
But even if the President once again emphasized that the “peak”, the climax in the Corona crisis, was not only reached, but was already behind the USA: the reality in many parts of the country is very different. The peak in the number of infected people is just around the corner – for example in the state of New Jersey, which has been hardest hit after New York. In an interview with the Tagesspiegel, Governor Phil Murphy said this week that his state was probably several weeks away from the peak.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, a Republican who is even a friend of the President’s party, said Thursday that this week was the least appropriate to ease the Corona requirements. “The curve is still rising here in the Washington DC-Baltimore region,” said Hogan on CBS’s “Today Show.”
It was the worst time to let people outside unprotected again and would only endanger them. First, the test capacities would have to be expanded significantly. This is evidently a problem all over the country – even if the president claims otherwise.
Trump had promoted America’s rapid opening in the past few days, possibly starting on May 1. The previous government guidelines in Washington apply until April 31.
Seven governors extended their terms on Thursday
Some states had already given a clear answer to this before Trump’s big appearance in the evening: seven governors extended their respective measures until May 15, including New York and the District of Columbia, in which the capital Washington is located. Ten states have announced that they will coordinate their actions without involving the White House. The question of what happens when parts of the country open and others do not comes to the fore.
The United States is currently the worst affected country by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, more than 30,000 people have died here after being infected with the novel corona virus. Trump had belittled the threat of the virus for a long time, assuring that the situation in the United States was under control.
–
