TOMORROW. JOINING US NOW IS JOSHUA
JOHNSON.
JOHNSON. AND SEAN PATRICK MAHONEY.
CONGRESSMAN, HOW ARE YOUR
CONSTITUENTS.
CONSTITUENTS. A DISTRICT VERY NEAR THE ONE
THAT HOUSES NEW ROCHELLE.
HOW ARE YOU GUYS DOING?
>> THAT’S RIGHT, I REPRESENT THE
AREA JUST NORTH OF THERE.
I DID A TELEPHONE TOWN HALL LAST
NIGHT, 33,000 OF MY CONSTITUENTS
GOT ON THE PHONE AND WE TOOK
QUESTIONS FOR AN HOUR.
PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED.
UNDERSTANDABLY.
UNDERSTANDABLY. THEY SEE CONFUSION AND MIXED
MESSAGING AT THE TOP.
THEY KNOW THE RESPONSE HAS BEEN
SLOW AND INADEQUATE.
THEY’RE DUMBFOUND THAT IN THE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WE
HAVEN’T DONE THE WIDESPREAD
TESTING TO UNDERSTAND THE
EPIDEMIOLOGY OF THIS DISEASE.
THEY’VE DONE THAT IN OTHER
COUNTRIES.
COUNTRIES. MY CONSTITUENTS ALSO WANT TO
KNOW WHY WE’RE NOT WORKING WITH
OUR INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS SO WE
UNDERSTAND THE GLOBAL EXPERIENCE
WITH THIS VIRUS SO WE CAN LEARN
THE LESSONS IN TIME TO DO SOME
GOOD.
GOOD. I REALLY WANT TO COMMEND THE
GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK WHO HAS
BEEN VERY EFFECTIVE IN HIS
RESPONSE.
RESPONSE. WE HAVE PASSED $8 BILLION OUT OF
THE CONGRESS AND THAT’S GREAT,
BUT THE REAL CHALLENGE NOW IS
WHETHER THE ADMINISTRATION CAN
GET THAT MONEY OUT THE DOOR.
YOU’VE WORKED IN THE WHITE
HOUSE, SO HAVE I, THERE’S BIG
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PASSING THE
BILL ON THE HILL AND GETTING THE
AGENCIES OUT OF THE GEAR AND
SPENDING MONEY WHERE NEEDED.
TO UNDERSTAND THE SPREAD AND THE
INCIDENCES OF THIS DISEASE.
>> CONGRESSMAN, HOW EFFECTIVE
CAN YOU BE WITHOUT
DECISIONMAKING ABOUT PEOPLE’S
MOBILITY COMING FROM THE TOP AND
I GUESS I ASK THAT QUESTION, IF
FLIGHTS ARE COMING IN AND OUT,
PEOPLE HAPPEN TO LIVE IN YOUR
DISTRICT, COMING INTO THE
COUNTRY FROM ITALY OR OTHER
PLACES AND THEY’RE NOT TEST, IT
WOULD SEEM THAT THOSE EFFORTS
WOULD BE FUTILE.
>> WELL, LOOK, WE NEED TO DO
SUFFICIENT TESTING ON A GREAT
ENOUGH SCALE SO WE UNDERSTAND
EXACTLY WHAT THE EPIDEMIOLOGY OF
THIS DISEASE IS.
IN OTHER WORDS, ARE PEOPLE WITH
SYMPTOMS WITH THE DISEASE?
THE MORTALITY RATE IS LOWER THAN
WE THINK.
WE THINK. IF WE UNDERSTAND THAT IT’S THAT
SIDE SPREAD, IT WILL MAKE SENSE
IN THE FUTURE TO ISOLATE
VULNERABLE PEOPLE.
VULNERABLE PEOPLE. IN OTHER WORDS, WE NEED TO
UNDERSTAND THE DISEASE.
AND YOU’RE RIGHT, NICOLLE, IN A
CRISIS, NO SUBSTITUTE FOR
PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP AND IT’S
OUTRAGEOUS AND INFURIATED THAT
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES HAS HAPPY-TALKED THIS
VIRUS, BURIED HIS HEAD IN THE
SAND.
SAND. UNDERMINED PEOPLE TRYING TO DO
THEIR JOBS.
THEIR JOBS. HE’S MIXED POLITICS WITH A
PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.
WE CAN’T DO THIS WITHOUT STRONG
PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP
PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP PARTICULARLY WHEN THERE’S
BILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT NEED TO
GET OUT THE DOOR THROUGH
EXECUTIVE ACTION AND BETTER
COORDINATION OF THE AGENCY AND
CONGRESSMAN, HOW WOULD YOU
CHARACTERIZE YOUR ACCESS TO THE
TOP SCIENTISTS?
TOP SCIENTISTS? IS IT UNFETTERED OR ARE YOU
EXPERIENCING ANY BOTTLENECKS TO
GET QUESTIONS ANSWERED FROM
DOCTORS IN YOUR AREA?
>> WE HAVE GREAT MEDICAL
PROFESSIONALS IN THE STATE OF
NEW YORK, OBVIOUSLY, AND
ELSEWHERE AROUND THE COUNTRY,
I’D TRUST DR. ANTHONY FAUCI WITH
MY LIFE.
MY LIFE. THE PROBLEM IS IF HE’S BEING HAM
STRUNG, WHETHER THE EFFORT
ITSELF IS BEING UNDERMINED BY
THE MESSAGE THAT EVERYONE IS
GETTING FROM THE TOP AND WE HAVE
SEEN THIS BEFORE.
COMPARISONS ARE DANGEROUS.
THIS IS THE PRESIDENT WHO USED A
SHARPIE TO MAKE A HURRICANE GO
WHERE HE WANTED TO GO.
THIS IS PRESIDENT WHO DENIED
RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE IN OUR
ELECTIONS DESPITE ALL THE
EVIDENCE WE KNOW ABOUT.
NOW WE COME TO A PUBLIC HEALTH
EMERGENCY HE DOESN’T WANT IT
HERE, HE DOESN’T WANT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE IT AND THAT HAM
STRINGS THE PEOPLE TRYING TO
FIGHT IT.
FIGHT IT. AND IT’S GOING TO AFC ALL OF US.
>> YOU MENTIONED SOME OF HIS
POLITICAL MOTIVATIONS IN THOSE
OTHER FLASH POINTS IN HIS
THREE-YEAR PRESIDENCY, I WONDER
WHAT IMPACT YOU THINK JUST THE
WIDESPREAD CONCERNS AND MEMBERS
OF CONGRESS ARE MORE IN TOUCH
WITH THIS THAN THOSE RUNNING FOR
PRESIDENT, DO YOU THINK THAT’S
SHAPING THE PRESIDENTIAL
CONTEST, BOTH THE PRIMARY AND
THE GENERAL ELECTION TO COME IN
WAYS THAT ARE UNDERREPORTED AT
THIS POINT IN.
>> WELL, WHEN I WATCHED JOE
BIDEN GO OUT AND SPEAK LAST
NIGHT, THAT LOOKED LIKE A
PRESIDENT TO ME AND SO I THINK
THERE’S A FLIGHT TO QUALITY, I
THINK THERE’S FLIGHT TO
NORMALCY, I THINK PEOPLE WANT TO
UNDERSTAND THEIR PRESIDENT
UNDERSTANDS HOW SERIOUS THIS IS,
THAT THEY’RE GOING TO BRING THE
BEST PEOPLE TO THE TABLE AND SO
I THINK PART OF WHAT YOU’RE
SEEING WITH THE CONSOLIDATION IN
THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY AROUND VICE
PRESIDENT BIDEN IS THE
REASSURANCE HE’LL PROVIDE IN
THIS SCARY TIME, THAT IF HE WAS
IN CHARGE RIGHT NOW WE WOULD BE
A LOT BETTER OFF, HE WOULD BE
FIGHTING THIS ENDIMMIC WITH ALL
OF THE TOOLS IN OUR KIT, JUST
THE WAY THE OBAMA/BIDEN
ADMINISTRATION DID DURING THE
EBOLA CRISIS.
EBOLA CRISIS. WE HAVE A GOOD MODEL FOR THIS.
AT THE OTHER AGENCIES THAT ARE
ON THE FRONT LINES, CDC AND FDA,
THEY’RE TALENTED PEOPLE WHO ARE
WAITING TO BE RALLIED AND