This inside account of Trump's response to coronavirus documents the unfolding disaster we managed to avoid for three years: a con man meeting a crisis he couldn't fake his way out of. nyti.ms/33putOn
"Mr. Trump did not want to highlight the virus as a public health threat when it was developing in China in January. Concerned about rattling financial markets, he signaled to advisers that he wanted to play it down." He "said publicly that any danger would pass by April 1." 
Kushner began by "advising the president that the media’s coverage exaggerated the threat." Later, he "sought to take on a more expansive role for himself despite his lack of knowledge on the topic and without talking to most of the task force members or public health experts."
"But after Mr. Trump delivered an error-ridden Oval Office address last week, [he] followed it with an appearance Friday in the Rose Garden in which he said Google had developed a coronavirus testing website that did not exist. Mr. Kushner was deeply involved in both efforts."
"Crises are treated as day-to-day public relations problems by Mr. Trump, who thinks ahead in short increments of time and early on in his presidency told aides to consider each day as an episode in a television show." nyti.ms/33putOn
And here's a concise summary of the Trumpian chaos now playing out in needless delay and deaths. nyti.ms/33putOn
