This weekend, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro criticized the CDC for having “really let the country down with testing.” The White House’s motivation is clear: they want to exonerate Trump while discrediting the CDC, especially now that the CDC is pushing for evidence-based policy as states start to reopen.
However, given their history, it’s very hard to create distance between Trump and the CDC. And Navarro’s comments only serve to inadvertently acknowledge that the Trump administration botched its response to the coronavirus crisis.
Here’s a look at the facts:
White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro Acknowledged That Trump’s CDC “Really Let the Country Down With Testing”
White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro: “The CDC — Which Really Had The Most Trusted Brand Around The World In This Space — Really Let The Country Down With The Testing.” “Speaking on NBC News’s ’Meet the Press,’ Navarro sharply criticized the CDC over its production of a flawed coronavirus test kit that contributed to a nationwide delay in testing. ‘Early on in this crisis, the CDC — which really had the most trusted brand around the world in this space — really let the country down with the testing,’ Navarro said. ‘Because not only did they keep the testing within the bureaucracy, they had a bad test. And that did set us back.’” [Washington Post, 5/17/20]
But He Ignores That Trump Is Responsible for the CDC’s Failures: He Picked Robert Redfield to Lead the CDC, Appointed Him to the White House Coronavirus Task Force, & Praised Redfield’s Early Response
In 2018, Donald Trump Picked Robert Redfield To Lead The Centers For Disease Control And Prevention. “Robert Redfield was a well-known AIDS researcher and favorite of Christian conservatives when President Donald Trump picked him to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2018, where he has helped implement sweeping plans to fight HIV and opioids in the United States while pushing to tackle Ebola abroad. But confronted by the increasingly global coronavirus outbreak, CDC and Redfield’s actions are now under intense scrutiny — both inside and outside the administration.” [Politico, 2/26/20]
In 2020, The White House Appointed CDC Director Robert Redfield To The Coronavirus Task Force. “President Trump formed a coronavirus task force in late January, and members have been meeting regularly. But as the virus began to spread around the globe and infections were confirmed in the United States, Mr. Trump named Vice President Mike Pence as his point person at the end of February, and more administration officials were added to the panel…. A longtime AIDS researcher, Dr. Robert R. Redfield has served since March 2018 as the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.” [New York Times, 2/29/20]
Trump Repeatedly Praised The CDC Throughout February, As Its Botched Testing Slowed The U.S. Response To Coronavirus:
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By Mid-February, The U.S. Was Only Testing About 100 Samples A Day. “But soon after the F.D.A. cleared the C.D.C. to share its test kits with state health department labs, some discovered a problem. The third sequence, or “probe,” gave inconclusive results. While the C.D.C. explored the cause — contamination or a design issue — it told those state labs to stop testing.The startling setback stalled the C.D.C.’s efforts to track the virus when it mattered most. By mid-February, the nation was testing only about 100 samples per day, according to the C.D.C.’s website.” [New York Times, 3/28/20]
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February 27, 2020: Trump Praised “All Of The Many Professionals Doing Such A Fine Job At CDC & All Other Agencies On The Coronavirus Situation.” “Congratulations and thank you to our great Vice President & all of the many professionals doing such a fine job at CDC & all other agencies on the Coronavirus situation. Only a very small number in U.S., & China numbers look to be going down. All countries working well together!” Twitter, Donald Trump, 2/27/20]
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February 25, 2020: Trump Said “CDC And My Administration Are Doing A GREAT Job Of Handling Coronavirus.” “CDC and my Administration are doing a GREAT job of handling Coronavirus, including the very early closing of our borders to certain areas of the world.” [Twitter, Donald Trump, 2/25/20]
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February 24, 2020: Trump Praised The CDC For “Working Hard And Very Smart” On Coronavirus. On February 24th, Trump tweeted: “The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA. We are in contact with everyone and all relevant countries. CDC & World Health have been working hard and very smart. Stock Market starting to look very good to me!” [Twitter, Donald Trump, 2/24/20]
The Motive: Now That the CDC Is Publicly Calling for Evidence-Based Decision Making, Trump and His Allies Are Trying to Create Distance and Point the Finger at the CDC
Just Last Week, CDC Director Robert Redfield Sounded An Alarm That Our Nation’s Public Health Resources Have Been Insufficient To Meet The Challenges That COVID-19 Has Posed. “Appearing remotely at a Senate committee hearing on Tuesday, Redfield detailed the CDC’s efforts to combat the pandemic, including expert assistance to state health authorities, disease surveillance and testing and contact tracing strategy. But he also sounded an alarm that the nation’s public health resources have been insufficient to meet the challenge that covid-19 has posed. ‘We need to rebuild our nation’s public health infrastructure: data and data analytics, public health laboratory resilience and our nation’s public health workforce,’ he said.” [Washington Post, 5/17/20]
In Recent Weeks, The White House Has Held Up The CDC’s Draft Guidance That Would Help States Reopen Safely, Leaving States And Localities To Fend For Themselves. “Tensions between the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spilled out into public view on Sunday as a top adviser to President Trump criticized the public health agency’s response to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The comments by White House trade adviser Peter Navarro are the latest signal of how the Trump administration has sought to sideline the CDC. The agency typically plays the lead role in public health crises, but in recent weeks it’s had its draft guidance for reopening held up by the White House, leaving states and localities to largely fend for themselves.” [Washington Post, 5/17/20]
- White House Officials Said They Were Frustrated By The CDC’s Leak Of Reopening Guidance That Trump’s Political Appointees Refused To Make Public. “In addition to the issue of testing, White House officials say they are also frustrated by what they consider the agency’s balky flow of data and information and the leak of an early version of its reopening recommendations, according to three administration officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal disagreements.” [Washington Post, 5/17/20]