Alex Gibney says five companies chosen by the Trump administration were able to take advantage of the shortage of personal protective equipment during the first days of the pandemic, as states struggled to purchase enough to protect their workers from the frontline health He says, « These companies would then have this imported equipment at taxpayer expense, and then were free to sell that equipment at the price they wanted. » And at least 50% of that material could be sold in states that didn’t even know of hotspots if the price was right. »
Photo courtesy of NEON
President Trump told Americans at the end of January that the government was prepared for the coronavirus In an interview with CNBC, the day Seattle recorded the first US case of COVID-19, Trump said, “We have it totally under control This is a person from China and we have him under control It’s going to be fine «
Today 220,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 More than 8 million have been infected Cases and hospitalizations rise again just before the holidays
Oscar-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney (« Agents of Chaos ») examined why the US – the richest and most developed country and home to some of the world’s foremost infectious disease experts – has failed so staggering He comes out with a new documentary called « Totally Under Control »
Gibney tells Press Play that he is indeed sending a message to voters: « The Trump administration has failed miserably and has honestly betrayed the country »
He says that if people come to this movie – and to « Agents of Chaos » – with an honest and fair mindset, they will be alarmed by Trump’s response to the pandemic, whether they are for it or against Trump
He also hopes the film will help those less politically engaged realize the existential moment the US is in and the importance of voting
« We made it as a skill film, not as a film intended to serve the interests of a political party, » he says
Gibney says the US actually had its own handbook for the coronavirus, which the Obama administration has rigorously developed based on previous outbreaks It has been passed on to the Trump administration
« But even more intriguing, the Trump administration had conducted some sort of vigorous pandemic exercise with its main pandemic perpetrators and published a report in October 2019, just before the pandemic hit here, which amounted to a very comprehensive playbook of what to do right and mistakes to avoid They had it all there, ”he says « But they never took it off the shelf. They didn’t implement any of the playbooks they had so rigorously compiled »
Why didn’t they follow the strategies? “It was a combination of incompetence and political expediency, which the Trump administration didn’t want to believe in COVID as a pandemic,” Gibney says “Because if there was a pandemic, it meant people were going to catch it If you tested it it was going to reveal more and more cases And it was going to upend the Trump administration’s claim that everything was fine Because after all it was sailing, he thought, on the waves of a powerful economy to reelect «
He adds that the administration has made a successful effort to direct the message of the Centers for Disease Control in a way that dovetails with the political message of the White House
Towards the end of the film, Gibney sheds light on supply chain issues with personal protective equipment (PPE) and chats with Max Kennedy, a task force volunteer as Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, summoned Kennedy reveals that during his time there (about a month or two) his team didn’t buy a single mask So what was the purpose of this task force?
Gibney says Kushner was supposed to step in as a big business man and get vital PPE for healthcare providers “Then to find out that the task force is not associated with any federal market It’s composed of 10 volunteers having absolutely no connection with the industry «
He continues, “As long as the PPE was obtained… Max Kennedy, who was the grandson of Robert F Kennedy, sometimes made a deal He would not be allowed to pay for it through government procurement, but he would then pass it on to five companies chosen by the Trump administration These companies would then have this imported material at taxpayer expense, and then were free to sell this material at the price of their choice. And at least 50% of that material could be sold in states that didn’t even know of hotspots if the price was right. It could even be sold to foreign countries «
Has there been any fallout? Gibney says there is an investigation in the Senate « But I think he first got lost in the noise of a very clever about-face by the Trump administration, which was to blame the states for the problem. that the federal government had created »
Why did no one in the administration say a change of course was necessary, if only to save the economy, because that’s what Trump hoped to be re-elected on?
« This administration has magical thinking… We had the opportunity to contain it… But the Trump administration has always been late And yet he hoped it would all go away… If you got a hole in the roof and that you insist that it will never rain and it rains incessantly, the problem is not in the roof It’s the owner of the house, ”says Gibney
But what about Europe? He implemented aggressive contact tracing, at least in Germany, but the region still has problems today Gibney responds, « It’s not that it’s easy But I think in terms of calculating with a scale of how well or poorly the response was handled, if you look at the United States, which matters… 4 % of the world’s population and 20% of global deaths, we are clearly on the wrong side «
KCRW supports our mission to serve our community in any way we can during this difficult time We are here to provide you with local news, public health information, music for your mind and a cultural connection. Stay informed and sign up for our newsletters And, if at this time you are able to support our efforts, please consider donating
Guest: Alex Gibney – director of « Totally Under Control » and « Agents of Chaos » –
@AlexGibneyfilm
Host: Madeleine Brand
Producers: Sarah Sweeney,
Michell Eloy,
Amy Ta,
Rosalie Atkinson,
Brian Hardzinski,
Angie Perrin,
Kathryn barnes
President Trump told Americans at the end of January that the government was ready for the coronavirus In an interview with CNBC, the day Seattle recorded the first US case of
From Lysol wipes and hand sanitizer to air purifiers and bleach, people are using anything they can get their hands on to try and kill the coronavirus One more tool for
The state issued new protocols for reopening theme parks Initially this brought some silver lining, but meeting the requirements may take several months, leaving the theme behind
Halloween is only 10 days away But LA County has discouraged deception and banned large gatherings like parties For stores that rent or sell costumes, Halloween
This year, researchers at the Cal State Long Beach Shark Lab scored three times as many sharks as last year, even with fewer marine biologists in the field due to
Totally under control
News from the world – United States – « The Trump administration has failed miserably and has honestly betrayed the country »: Alex Gibney on the US response to COVID
