You all know I'm no faan of Orangeman, but WHY is every member of the media saying we're in

[Caliman73]

34. That is not how Federalism works.

States and counties can take some measures on their own, but are HEAVILY dependent on the Federal government for funding and for mandates. States rely on the CDC for accurate information on spread, patterns, tracking, movement, and other logistical data.

Why is it that States declare states of emergency during disasters? To allow them to access federal money and expertise.

As others have said, Trump cut the budgets of the very agencies that are meant to deal with situations like this. He fired the pandemic response team AND he has placed stupid sycophantic cronies in positions that should be filled by sober, professionals.

Most of large counties like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Santa Clara, etc... are expending their resources to try to prevent the spread, but they still rely on their States to help and the states rely on the Federal government. As of now, that Federal Government is muzzled and gutted so they cannot be relied on. Smaller counties and state even, do not have the resources to cope.