THREAD: For my new @WIRED oral history, I excavated scores of official reports & articles & hours of media over 25 years to show—in their own words—the clear and consistent red flags about pandemic preparedness that Trump ignored. Five things stood out: wired.com/story/an-oral-…
1) All of this was foreseen. All of it. I even found a 2012 @HHSGov report on the need to develop "social distancing" protocols and how America's ventilator capacity was "significantly lower than the current estimated need during a severe pandemic." wired.com/story/an-oral-…
2) For 25 years, the USG has devoted significant time and attention to pandemic preparedness. It wasn't perfect, but we were steadily getting better from Clinton to Bush to Obama. Until Trump came along. Then he turned his back on the plans and the people. wired.com/story/an-oral-…
3) US intel has been warning about pandemic threats for over a decade. In 2013, Jim Clapper said: "Such an outbreak would result in a global pandemic that causes suffering and death in every corner of the world, probably in fewer than six months. This is not a hypothetical."
And ten days before Trump's inaugural, Dr. Fauci himself promised a @Georgetown panel: "There is no question that there will be a challenge to the coming administration in the arena of infectious diseases," he said. "There will be a surprise outbreak." wired.com/story/an-oral-…
4) People warned abt Trump's inattention within 7 *weeks* of his inauguration. @ewarren and others wrote to @HHSGov and said, "Actions taken by President Trump could also impair our readiness in the face of a public health crisis, such as a flu pandemic.” wired.com/story/an-oral-…
5) The warnings came almost monthly. Among others, Bill Gates warned @VP Pence and other US officials at the Munich Security Conference in 2017. Then Bill Gates met with Trump personally in March 2018 to warn him of the pandemic threat....
The final warning, from a Republican-led commission at @CSIS came on November 18, 2019. It's #1 recommendation? "Restore health security leadership at the White House National Security Council." We now know Covid-19 first appeared in China on Nov. 17. wired.com/story/an-oral-…
