I doubt any of my readers will be surprised by this. But it’s important to document the atrocities:
The coronavirus response being spearheaded by President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has relied in part on volunteers from consulting and private equity firms with little expertise in the tasks to which they were assigned, exacerbating chronic problems in obtaining supplies for hospitals and other needs, according to numerous government officials and a volunteer involved in the effort.
About two dozen employees from Boston Consulting Group, Insight, McKinsey and other firms have volunteered their time — some on paid vacation leave from their jobs and others without pay — to aid the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to administration officials and others familiar with the arrangement.
Although some of the volunteers have relevant backgrounds and experience, many others were poorly matched with the jobs they were assigned, including those given the task of securing personal protective equipment, or PPE, for hospitals nationwide, according to a complaint filed last month with the House Oversight Committee.
The complaint, obtained by The Washington Post, was submitted by a volunteer who has since left the group and who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution from the administration. Key elements of the complaint were confirmed by six administration officials and one outside adviser to the effort, many of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
A spokeswoman for the oversight panel declined to comment.
The document alleges that the team responsible for PPE had little success in helping the government secure such equipment, in part because none of the team’s members had significant experience in health care, procurement or supply-chain operations. In addition, none of the volunteers had existing relationships with manufacturers or a clear understanding of customs requirements or Food and Drug Administration rules, according to the complaint and two senior administration officials.
“Americans are facing a crisis of tragic proportions and there is an urgent need for an effective, efficient and bold response,” reads the complaint, which was sent to the committee on April 8. “From my few weeks as a volunteer, I believe we are falling short. I am writing to alert my representatives of these challenges and to ask that they do everything possible to help front-line health-care workers and other Americans in need.”
Of course they put people in charge who knew nothing about anything. Why do something like enlist the 26,000 member Defense Logistics Agency which exists to move massive numbers of personnel and equipment anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice? Or hire actual experts in the field who have experience dealing with medical emergencies?
But you just have to love this:
Supply-chain volunteers were instructed to fast-track protective equipment leads from “VIPs,” including conservative journalists friendly to the White House, according to the complaint and one senior administration official.
“Fox & Friends” host Brian Kilmeade, for example, called two people he knew in the administration to pass along a lead about protective equipment in an effort to be helpful, according to two people familiar with the outreach. Fox News Channel host Jeanine Pirro also repeatedly lobbied the administration for a specific New York hospital to receive a large quantity of masks, one of the people said.
Kilmeade and Pirro said they were not aware that their tips were being prioritized, a Fox News spokeswoman said.
The volunteer group tasked with securing protective equipment is part of a broader coronavirus team set up by Kushner that spans the White House, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Much of the effort is run out of office space at FEMA headquarters.
Kushner and other key administration officials praised the volunteers’ efforts, which they said have helped the administration’s virus response.
No, they clearly hindered it because they had no clue what they were doing.
This crew makes Halberstam’s “Best and the Brightest” look like … the best and the brightest, by comparison.