On March 16, the White House issued initial social distancing guidelines, including closing schools and avoiding groups of more than 10. But an estimated 90 percent of the cumulative deaths in the United States from Covid-19, at least from the first wave of the epidemic, might have been prevented by putting social distancing policies into effect two weeks earlier, on March 2, when there were only 11 deaths in the entire country. The effect would have been substantial had the policies been imposed even one week earlier, on March 9, resulting in approximately a 60 percent reduction in deaths.
He didn’t lead, everyone was on their own trying to figure out what to do. Some states did better than others, working with what information they had. But we know from all the reporting that they were scrambling to figure out how to get tests throughout February and March and the President of the United States was lying about everything every day during that important period.
I’m sure it’s always confusing. But there is simply no doubt that the lack of leadership and integrity at the top of the federal government cost many lives. That’s Donald Trump’s legacy. He cannot escape it.