Letter: In Response

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Letter to the Editor

Trump’s response to the coronavirus.

—Trump banned travel with China; Biden opposed the travel ban. When Trump shut down travel with China on Jan. 31, Biden called it racist—“hysterical xenophobia” and “fear-mongering.” But the travel ban saved lives, as Dr. Fauci admitted to Congress last month. More than two months later, Biden flip-flopped and decided he supported the China travel ban. 

—Trump encouraged people to cover their faces and became a stronger proponent of masks over time. Biden declares that he would impose a national mask mandate—without explaining how he would enforce it. Trump never opposed masks; on the contrary, he encouraged people in March to cover their faces, before experts said so. 

—Trump used the Defense Production Act, without nationalizing industry. Biden demanded that Trump invoke the Defense Production Act—after Trump had already done so. But Trump was careful in his use of that law, explaining that countries that nationalized industry—like Venezuela—destroyed their economies. 

—Trump allowed states to set their own policies. Though Trump took action at a federal level to shut down foreign travel, among other measures, he let states decide whether to shut down their economies. As a result of Trump’s federalist approach, the U.S. economy is rebounding faster than countries that shut down completely.

—Trump suspended cumbersome regulations and encouraged innovation. Unlike Biden and the Democrats, who prefer regulating everything, Trump cut red tape to accelerate the development of treatments and vaccines for COIVD-19. He also issued executive orders reducing the cost of drugs and allowing the use of telemedicine, so that doctors could speak to and treat patients remotely.

—Trump followed the scientists in encouraging schools to reopen. Biden and the Democrats say they would put science first, but they are defying the scientific consensus that it is safe—and important—for children to return to school. Trump backed the reopening of schools, which would not only benefit children but would also allow parents—particularly mothers—to return to work, helping the economy recover.

Finally, it is also crucial to note that Biden and Harris encouraged the nationwide protests that followed the killing of George Floyd. These protests defied the rules on large gatherings, social distancing, and the wearing of masks. They helped spread coronavirus and sent the message that the rules did not matter. In that way, Biden and Harris made the coronavirus pandemic worse.

Lawrence Weisdorn