We ran the CDC. No president ever politicized its science the way Trump has.

[brooklynite]

Washington Post

As America begins the formidable task of getting our kids back to school and all of us back to work safely amid a pandemic that is only getting worse, public health experts face two opponents: covid-19, but also political leaders and others attempting to undermine the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As the debate last week around reopening schools more safely showed, these repeated efforts to subvert sound public health guidelines introduce chaos and uncertainty while unnecessarily putting lives at risk.

As of this date, the CDC guidelines, which were designed to protect children, teachers, school staffers and their families — no matter the state and no matter the politics — have not been altered. It is not unusual for CDC guidelines to be changed or amended during a clearance process that moves through multiple agencies and the White House. But it is extraordinary for guidelines to be undermined after their release. Through last week, and into Monday, the administration continued to cast public doubt on the agency’s recommendations and role in informing and guiding the nation’s pandemic response. On Sunday, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos characterized the CDC guidelines as an impediment to reopening schools quickly rather than what they are: the path to doing so safely. The only valid reason to change released guidelines is new information and new science — not politics.

One of the many contributions the CDC provides our country is sound public health guidance that states and communities can adapt to their local context — expertise even more essential during a pandemic, when uncertainty is the norm. The four of us led the CDC over a period of more than 15 years, spanning Republican and Democratic administrations alike. We cannot recall over our collective tenure a single time when political pressure led to a change in the interpretation of scientific evidence.

The CDC is home to thousands of experts who for decades have fought deadly pathogens such as HIV, Zika and Ebola. Despite the inevitable challenges of evolving science and the public’s expectation of certainty, these are the people best positioned to help our country emerge from this crisis as safely as possible. Unfortunately, their sound science is being challenged with partisan potshots, sowing confusion and mistrust at a time when the American people need leadership, expertise and clarity. These efforts have even fueled a backlash against public health officials across the country: Public servants have been harassed, threatened and forced to resign when we need them most. This is unconscionable and dangerous.

By
Tom Frieden,
Jeffrey Koplan,
David Satcher and
Richard Besser

[Chainfire]

1. No, Nancy

the virus is the impediment to opening the schools.

This entire pandemic as been a struggle between money and health. With Republicans at the helm, there is no question which takes precedent. If a few thousand extra students and teachers have to die, so be it. Even after millions of infections and 130,000 deaths, Republicans still can't admit that the virus is areal threat to the nation, much less admit that their policies and lack of policy is the driving force behind the massive infections. Our national response to the virus is insanity.

[eppur_se_muova]

2. Is 45 really 'politicizing' things ? Or is it more like 'egocizing' ? He doesn't care about ...

... the politics involved, except to the extent it affects his "brand". The world is divided into those who follow him, and those who oppose him, and he expects the former to show no quarter in dealing with the latter, even if they're members of his own party.

45 cares if you disagree with him personally or not. Whether you disagree with the Party doesn't mean shit to him.

[tanyev]

3. Agreed. The GOP has been Trumpified.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

4. K&R