All things political. Coronavirus Edition. (14 Viewers)

[Maxp]

I fear we are really going to be in a bad place due to the obvious cuts to the federal agencies that deal with infectious disease, but also the negative effect the Affordable Care act has had on non urban hospitals. Our front line defenses are ineffectual and our ability to treat the populous is probably at an all time low. Factor in the cost of healthcare and I can see our system crashing. What do you think about the politics of this virus?

 

[EmBeeFiveOhFour]

POTUS is tested "multiple times per day"

It only took a few hours for him to either lie about it or throw Kayleigh under the bus as a liar.

 

[Ayo]

Yep. I was telling my sister in Calcasieu, weeks ago, that their plan wasn’t going to look like this. It’s a mess and CPSB has only ever proven their tone deafness and incompetence.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Interesting article about the virus and politics
==============
The countries that top the rankings of COVID-19 deaths globally are not necessarily the poorest, the richest or even the most densely populated. But they do have one thing in common: They are led by populist, mold-breaking leaders.

Populism in politics means pushing policies that are popular with “the people,” not the elites and the experts. The United States’ Donald Trump, Britain’s Boris Johnson and Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro, as well as India’s Narendra Modi and Mexico’s Andrés Manuel López Obrador, have surged to power in democratic countries, challenging the old order by promising social benefits to the masses and rejecting the establishment.

But it turns out that when it comes to battling a new disease like COVID-19, the disruptive policies of populists are faring poorly compared to liberal democratic models in countries like Germany, France and Iceland in Europe, or South Korea and Japan in Asia.

Academics have been fretting about whether liberal democracy — the political system that helped defeat fascism in World War II, set up international institutions like the World Health Organization and seemed to have triumphed in the Cold War three decades ago — can muster the stuff to take on the new populism and address complex 21st-century challenges.

COVID-19 has crystallized that dilemma.

“This is a public health crisis that requires expertise and science to resolve. Populists by nature ... have a disdain for experts and science that are seen as part of the establishment,” says Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based think tank. He was discussing Brazil, where at least 81,000 people have died............

In struggle against pandemic, populist leaders fare poorly

The countries that top the rankings of COVID-19 deaths globally are not necessarily the poorest, the richest or even the most densely populated.

apnews.com

 

[wardorican]

This has a bit of a play by play for the current bill Cares Act 2.0, or split into smaller packages?

Stimulus negotiations: Republicans to release their opening offer Thursday | CNN Politics

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, after days of intraparty disputes and splits spilling into public view, will move Thursday to unify Republicans behind their initial $1 trillion coronavirus relief proposal.

www.cnn.com

McConnell's process
If you were paying attention to how McConnell rolled out the initial draft of what would become the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, you'll recognize what's about to happen. McConnell will talk about the proposal on the floor, followed by each of his committee chairs who led the drafting of specific pieces of the proposal.

Republican Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri, a member of leadership, told reporters Wednesday night the proposal wouldn't come out as a single bill, but instead as individual packages from the committees of jurisdiction. This is different than the CARES Act.
But there are a few reasons for the route McConnell is taking -- first, these chairs and committee staff have, indeed, been drafting and working through these proposals for several weeks so this is their work (with tweaks and final decisions made at points by leadership and the White House).

Second, and probably most importantly, this signals buy-in from the most senior and powerful members of McConnell's conference, with the goal being the members of the committees follow their chairmen in lining up behind the bill.
The dynamics are very different from what they were the first time around, but it was an effective strategy in unifying the whole conference in March. There's some effort to replicate that here as lawmakers prepare to head into the brawl of negotiations that will be the weeks ahead.

Reality check: This is not March. The splits in the GOP conference over a new package are real -- and have been present for weeks. McConnell will get a strong majority behind his proposal and, most importantly, will be aligned with his frontline senators up for reelection. But there are more than a handful of Republicans who will oppose the bill right out of the gate, including some who are opposed to any new spending at all in the wake of the initial $2.2 emergency economic relief package. McConnell knows that and has planned for it. The real challenge will be to ensure the opposition doesn't spread, undercutting the talks with Democrats.

Of note: Democratic senators and senior aides have quietly been watching the last several days with a mix of glee, astonishment and concern. Glee because they all appreciate divides in the Republican conference and see it as an opportunity to cut a more beneficial deal with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, they say. Astonishment because it has been two months since Democrats passed their own proposal and Republicans are just getting around to theirs. Concern because if the GOP chasm becomes too wide, thee is concern a bill might not come together at all.

"The Republican Party is so disorganized, chaotic and unprepared that they can barely cobble together a partisan bill in their own conference," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday.
To be clear, that is very unlikely at this point -- the incentives for reaching an agreement are simply too high, aides and senators in both parties say. But it's out there.

What's outstanding

There is an agreement on direct payments, or stimulus checks, but the exact details haven't been briefed to members and staff yet. The expectation is the second round of checks will be more targeted toward a lower income threshold, but the mechanics of that have been subject to negotiation the last few days.

Federal unemployment insurance enhancement. Aides were told last night in a conference call with leadership that the $600 weekly federal unemployment insurance benefit would be reduced, and extended at a flat rate for two months. That would give states the time to implement a system that could multiply the state benefit to factor in the federal enhancement, but have it capped at 100% of income. The specific flat rate, and how states with already overwhelmed unemployment systems could implement that, remains up in the air. Mnuchin, on CNBC, said the proposal would target "approximately 70% wage replacement."

 

[Optimus Prime]

Wouldn’t it be something if the cure turned out to be an easily available over the counter medication?

This is my first hearing about Pepcid

Sounds like it has zero basis for thinking it would be effective but spent 21 million on it anyway

=============================

As the coronavirus began its deadly march through the world, two well-respected American doctors identified a possible but seemingly unlikely remedy: Pepcid, the heartburn medication found on drugstore shelves everywhere.

There were no published data or studies to suggest that famotidine, the active ingredient in Pepcid, would be effective against the novel coronavirus.

And in early April, when government scientists learned of a proposal to spend millions in federal research funding to study Pepcid, they found it laughable, according to interviews, a whistleblower complaint and internal government records obtained by The Associated Press.

But that didn’t stop the Trump administration from granting a $21 million emergency contract to researchers trying it out on ailing patients. The Food and Drug Administration gave the clinical trial speedy approval even as a top agency official worried that the proposed daily injections of high doses of famotidine for already sick patients pushed safety “to the limits,” internal government emails show...........

Pepcid as a virus remedy? Trump admin's $21M gamble fizzled

As the coronavirus began its deadly march through the world, two well-respected American doctors identified a possible but seemingly unlikely remedy: Pepcid, the heartburn medication found on drugstore shelves everywhere.

apnews.com

 

[wardorican]

Wouldn’t it be something if the cure turned out to be an easily available over the counter medication?

This is my first hearing about Pepcid

Sounds like it has zero basis for thinking it would be effective but spent 21 million on it anyway

=============================

As the coronavirus began its deadly march through the world, two well-respected American doctors identified a possible but seemingly unlikely remedy: Pepcid, the heartburn medication found on drugstore shelves everywhere.

There were no published data or studies to suggest that famotidine, the active ingredient in Pepcid, would be effective against the novel coronavirus.

And in early April, when government scientists learned of a proposal to spend millions in federal research funding to study Pepcid, they found it laughable, according to interviews, a whistleblower complaint and internal government records obtained by The Associated Press.

But that didn’t stop the Trump administration from granting a $21 million emergency contract to researchers trying it out on ailing patients. The Food and Drug Administration gave the clinical trial speedy approval even as a top agency official worried that the proposed daily injections of high doses of famotidine for already sick patients pushed safety “to the limits,” internal government emails show...........

Pepcid as a virus remedy? Trump admin's $21M gamble fizzled

As the coronavirus began its deadly march through the world, two well-respected American doctors identified a possible but seemingly unlikely remedy: Pepcid, the heartburn medication found on drugstore shelves everywhere.

apnews.com

To be fair, I was shocked, but Pepcid (famotidine) is part of the cocktail they give you when you're having a major allergic reaction, along with benedryl. I guess it helps with chilling out your immune response, which is one of the issues with COVID, that your body has such a severe reaction to it, it puts your lungs and organs in shock. It's too much inflammation.

So, it wouldn't cure the disease, but possibly help reduce the overload on your body.

In my completely non medical opinion... only because my wife has had allergic reactions and has had the cocktail before.

 

[insidejob]

To be fair, I was shocked, but Pepcid (famotidine) is part of the cocktail they give you when you're having a major allergic reaction, along with benedryl. I guess it helps with chilling out your immune response, which is one of the issues with COVID, that your body has such a severe reaction to it, it puts your lungs and organs in shock. It's too much inflammation.

So, it wouldn't cure the disease, but possibly help reduce the overload on your body.

In my completely non medical opinion... only because my wife has had allergic reactions and has had the cocktail before.

$21 million...I'm willing to bet a lot of that easily lines the pockets of a few select politicians.

 

[Optimus Prime]

To be fair, I was shocked, but Pepcid (famotidine) is part of the cocktail they give you when you're having a major allergic reaction, along with benedryl. I guess it helps with chilling out your immune response, which is one of the issues with COVID, that your body has such a severe reaction to it, it puts your lungs and organs in shock. It's too much inflammation.

So, it wouldn't cure the disease, but possibly help reduce the overload on your body.

In my completely non medical opinion... only because my wife has had allergic reactions and has had the cocktail before.

that's certainly interesting

I'm curious why when hydrocloroquine was mentioned as a possible treatment it dominated the news for weeks

but not a peep about pepcid

 

[superchuck500]

 

[The moose]

Some how it is not shocking that we are not being entirely truthful.

This whole thing was just easy. Be honest and let the experts tell you what to do.

 

[Saintamaniac]

Some how it is not shocking that we are not being entirely truthful.

This whole thing was just easy. Be honest and let the experts tell you what to do.

Leopards can't change their spots....

 

[Taurus]

Leopards can't change their spots....

Even when doing so would've guaranteed reelection.
Trump whines about it because he's an idiot. Covid was a *gift* to him. An enemy to fight, a noble cause to rally the nation. But because of his illness, he simply could *not* do it.

 

[gummbo]

Even when doing so would've guaranteed reelection.
Trump whines about it because he's an idiot. Covid was a *gift* to him. An enemy to fight, a noble cause to rally the nation. But because of his illness, he simply could *not* do it.

THIS IS AGOOD THING,

 

[Taurus]

THIS IS AGOOD THING,❤❤❤

Please elaborate.

'Cause from where I sit, it's a freaking catastrophe.

 

[Complex Kid]

Please elaborate.

'Cause from where I sit, it's a freaking catastrophe.

Well they mean the part about Trump not getting reelected I assume. The other stuff not so much.

 

[Taurus]

Well they mean the part about Trump not getting reelected I assume. The other stuff not so much.

One would hope

 

[gummbo]

Please elaborate.

'Cause from where I sit, it's a freaking catastrophe.

Every time he makes a bad decision, hopefully it opens the eyes of one of his followers and changes the perspective so that this November they can vote with their minds instead of his elbows

 

[gummbo]

One would hope

Winner winner chicken dinner,864511320