>>> WE’RE RAPIDLY DEVELOPING VACCINE AND THEY CAN SPEAK TO
YOU, THE PROFESSIONALS CAN SPEAK
TO YOU ABOUT THAT.
THE VACCINE IS COMING ALONG WELL
AND SPEAKING TO THE DOCTORS, WE
THINK THIS IS SOMETHING WE CAN
DEVELOP FAIRLY RAPIDLY, A
VACCINE.
VACCINE. >> ALTHOUGH THIS IS THE FASTEST
WE’VE GONE FROM A SEQUENCE OF A
VIRUS TO A TRIAL, IT STILL WOULD
NOT BE ANY APPLICABLE TO THE
EPIDEMIC UNLESS WE REALLY WAIT
ABOUT A YEAR TO A YEAR AND A
HALF.
HALF. >> PRESIDENT TRUMP THERE
CONTRADICTING ONE OF THE
GOVERNMENT’S TOP EXPERTS ON
DISEASES ABOUT THE LENGTH OF
TIME IT’S GOING TO TAKE TO
DEVELOP A VACCINE FOR THE
CORONAVIRUS, ONCE AGAIN, RAISING
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PRESIDENT’S
CREDIBILITY AS THE NATION IS
STRIVING TO DEAL WITH THIS
POTENTIAL PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS.
JOINING ME NOW IS BEN RHODES AND
JON MEACHAM, PRESIDENTIAL
HISTORIAN AND BIOGRAPHER.
BEN, I’M GOING TO START WITH YOU
ON THIS ONE, THE DOCTOR THAT I
ACTUALLY JUST SPOKE TO, SHE HAS
PUBLISHED A PIECE IN "THE
WASHINGTON POST" ON GOVERNMENTS
NEED PEOPLE’S TRUST TO STOP AN
OUTBREAK, TRUST BEING THE MAIN
WORD THERE.
WORD THERE. THIS IS AN ADMINISTRATION THAT
HAS NOT HANDLED CRISES WELL.
DURING HURRICANE DORIAN HE
SHOWED A MAP SHOWING AN
INACCURATE FORECAST AND YOU HAD
PUERTO RICO WITH HIM THROWING
THE PAPER TOWELS AT THE CROWDS
AND THEN THERE WAS LAST NIGHT.
DOES THIS PRESIDENT AND THIS
ADMINISTRATION HAVE A
CREDIBILITY PROBLEM WHEN IT
COMES TO CRISIS LIKE WE’RE
DEALING WITH NOW?
>> YES, THEY HAVE A MASSIVE
PROBLEM AND IT’S ABSOLUTELY THE
CASE THAT TRUST MATTERS.
DURING THE EBOLA OUTBREAK, WE
HAD DAILY BRIEFINGS THAT WERE
MEANT TO GIVE PEOPLE THE
INFORMATION THAT THEY NEEDED TO
KNOW WHAT TO BE WORRIED ABOUT,
WHATNOT TO BE WORRIED ABOUT,
WHAT PERRECAUTIONS TO TAKE AND
WHAT WE’RE SEEING IS A PERFECT
STORM OF THE TRAP THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION HAS SET FOR
THEMSELVES.
THEMSELVES. THEY’VE LIED ABOUT REALLY
IMPORTANT MATTERS ABOUT WHAT THE
BASIS WAS FOR KILLING AN IRANIAN
DIRECTION, THE DIRECTION OF A
HURRICANE, THE CROWD SIZE OF THE
INAUGURATION ON THE VERY FIRST
DAY.
DAY. THE AMERICAN PEOPLE KNOW THAT
THEY CAN’T TRUST THE INFORMATION
THAT THIS PRESIDENT IS GIVING
THEM ABOUT THIS REALLY CRITICAL
ISSUE THAT AFFECTS THEIR DAILY
LIVES.
LIVES. WE KNOW THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS
HAD A DISDAIN FOR EXPERTISE IN
THE GOVERNMENT WHICH IS
REFLECTED IN THE FACT THAT
THEY’VE CUT CDC FUNDING, TRIED
TO SLASH THOSE BUDGETS.
WE’RE ENTERING UNCHARTERED
TERRITORY RIGHT NOW WHERE THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE NEED THIS
INFORMATION TO KNOW WHAT TO DO
IS WHAT NOT TO DO AND THEY CAN’T
TRUST THE INFORMATION THEY GET.
>> I WANT YOU TO PUT THIS IN A
HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR US.
TALK TO US ABOUT HOW OTHER
PRESIDENTS HAVE HANDLED NATIONAL
EMERGENCIES AS BEN JUST SPOKE
ABOUT WITH HIS FORMER BOSS,
PRESIDENT OBAMA AND OTHERS.
>> PRESIDENT OBAMA ON EBOLA IS A
GREAT CASE STUDY, GEORGE W. BUSH
AND THE ATTACK OF THE HIV/AIDS
IN AFRICA IS ONE OF THE STERLING
ELEMENTS OF THAT PRESIDENT’S
LEGACY.
LEGACY. THEN YOU LOOK BACK TO THE 1980s
FOR A COUNTER EXAMPLE AND THE
GOVERNMENT AND PRESIDENT REAGAN,
THE CULTURE -- POLITICAL CULTURE
WAS VERY SLOW TO RECOGNIZE WHAT
NEEDED TO BE DONE, EVEN IF
SOMETHING NEEDED TO BE DONE AND
ACKNOWLEDGING THAT.
ACKNOWLEDGING THAT. AND SO IT IS AS EVER A MIXED
RECORD.
RECORD. I THINK BEN IS RIGHT ABOUT THE
ESSENTIAL ROLE OF FACT HERE AND
SOMETIMES I THINK IN THIS ERA
THERE’S A BIT OF A PAINTBALL
NATURE TO THE FACT.
WE ARGUE ABOUT THINGS AS IF ALL
THIS WERE A POLITICAL GAME.
THIS IS NOT A GAME.
I ALWAYS THOUGHT --
>> STAND BY FOR A SECOND.
VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE IS
TALKING ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. LET’S TAKE A LISTEN.
>> ALL OF THE PATIENTS HAVE BEEN
TREATED AND ARE DOING WELL.
[ APPLAUSE ]
>> AND WHILE THE RISK TO THE
AMERICAN PUBLIC REMAINS LOW, AS
THE PRESIDENT SAID YESTERDAY,
WE’RE READY.
WE’RE READY. WE’RE READY FOR ANYTHING.
YESTERDAY PRESIDENT TRUMP
DIRECTED ME TO LEAD A WHOLE OF
GOVERNMENT APPROACH TO ADDRESS
THE CORONAVIRUS IN THIS COUNTRY.
AND I PROMISE YOU, WE WILL
CONTINUE TO BRING THE FULL
RESOURCES OF THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT TO BEAR TO PROTECT
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
[ APPLAUSE ]
>> AND AS THE PRESIDENT ALSO
SAID, IT’S IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER
WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.
THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR
PARTISANSHIP
PARTISANSHIP [ APPLAUSE ]
>> OBVIOUSLY, THE VICE PRESIDENT
THERE SAYING ALL THE PATIENTS
THAT ARE BEING TREATED ARE
ACTUALLY DOING QUITE WELL, THAT
WE ARE READY FOR ANYTHING AND
EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS AND THAT
THEY HAVE THE FULL RESOURCES AT
THEIR HANDS TO DEAL WITH THIS
CRISIS.
CRISIS. >> GOD-WILLING THEY’RE RIGHT,
GOD HELP US IF THEY’RE SPINNING
THIS OR OVERSTATING IT BECAUSE
IT IS A MATTER OF LIFE AND
DEATH.
DEATH. THIS IS AS CORE AN ISSUE AS YOU
CAN GET.
CAN GET. I THOUGHT A GREAT CRISIS OF
TRUST WOULD BE OVER A FOREIGN
POLICY CRISIS, WOULD BE OVER THE
PRESIDENT SAYING SOMETHING HE
KNEW NOT TO BE TRUE.
THIS IS MORE ELEMENTAL TO SOME
EXTENT.
EXTENT. AND WE HAVE TO BE WILLING TO
TRUST WHAT WE’RE BEING TOLD AND
ONE OF THE REASONS DONALD TRUMP
IS PRESIDENT IS BECAUSE IN 1965,
77% OF AMERICANS TRUSTED THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND TODAY
IT’S LESS THAN 15%.
>> UNBELIEVABLE.
>> UNBELIEVABLE. BEN, DO YOU THINK THAT THIS
PRESIDENT IS CONSIDERING MORE
THE POLITICAL LOSS AMIDST ALL OF
THIS VERSUS THE PERSONAL LOSS
THAT COULD HAPPEN IF THIS BLOWS
UP INTO A FULL PANDEMIC?
>> YES.
>> YES. WHAT BOTHERS ME, YOU HAVE THE
ADMINISTRATION TAKING AWAY THE
TOOLS THAT YOU USUALLY USE TO
COMMUNICATE TO THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE FACTS.
PEOPLE FACTS. THERE’S NO MORE WHITE HOUSE
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING.
DURING THE EBOLA PANDEMIC,
THAT’S WHEN WE WOULD HAVE THESE
FACTS.
FACTS. THAT PODIUM IS GONE.
THAT TOOL IS NO LONGER USED TO
COMMUNICATE TO PEOPLE.
IF YOU LOOK AT PRESIDENT TRUMP,
HE USES TWITTER AND THE TWEETS
THAT HE’S HAD ABOUT THIS VIRUS
HAVE NOT BORNE OUT.
HE PRAISED XI JINGPING FOR A
STRONG RESPONSE WHEN IN FACT XI
JINGPING’S FAILURE TO BE
TRANSPARENT ABOUT THE
CORONAVIRUS MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTE
TODAY THE WAY IN WHICH IT
SPREAD.
SPREAD. HE SEEMED TO WANT TO CALM
FINANCIAL MARKETS TO HELP THE
ECONOMY AND AID HIS RE-ELECTION
RATHER THAN PROVIDE FACTS.
MY HOPE IS AS AN AMERICAN THAT
THEY GET OUT OF THE WAY AND LET
THE EXPERTS GIVE US THESE FACTS.
LET CDC TALK.
THE CLIP YOU SHOWED AT THE
BEGINNING OF TRUMP SPINNING THIS
ABOUT A VACCINE AND THE
PROFESSIONALS PROVIDING THE
FACTS, LET’S HEAR FROM THE
PROFESSIONALS HERE.
PROFESSIONALS HERE. I HATE TO SAY IT, I WISH IT
WASN’T TRUE, BUT THE FACT IS,
THERE IS A CREDIBILITY GAP AND
THAT CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS IN
DEALING WITH AN EPIDEMIC LIKE
THIS.
THIS. >> PEOPLE ARE WORRIED AND THEY
WANT THE FACTS, THEY KNOW WHAT
TO DO AND WHAT’S REAL.