ON COVID, BIDEN LEADS FROM BEHIND. The White House briefing on Wednesday was dominated by one question: Is the Biden administration falling behind in dealing with COVID? Are the states now the leaders? And — this one was unspoken — is President Joe Biden irrelevant in all this?
In the past few days, several big states led by Democrats — New York, New Jersey, Illinois, California, Connecticut, Oregon, and others — have moved away from mask mandates. “People are frustrated,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy told the Washington Post. “There’s learning loss in our kids, mental health and stress among kids and adults. Folks are yearning for some sense of normalcy — and count me, by the way, among them.”
Obviously, Republican leaders such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have been there for a long time, often scorned by Democrats. But now, with the number of omicron cases plunging, Democrats are racing for the exits of COVID policy. “If Democrats can stop talking about COVID every day, treat it like the long-term problem it is, and start talking about more immediate concerns of voters, the better they will do in the midterms,” Democratic pollster Brian Stryker told ABC News.
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This rapid movement has created a dilemma at the White House. Biden sold himself as the man who could conquer COVID. And yet he seems far behind fellow Democrats — not to mention Republicans — out in the country.
That’s where the White House briefing came in. A reporter asked spokeswoman Jen Psaki: “Several states are now, it seems, well ahead of the federal government in explaining the path out of the pandemic. Is the president now falling behind states in explaining to Americans how we can, sort of, resume our normal lives and get back to normalcy?”
“Well, the president has said that we are moving toward a time when COVID won’t disrupt our daily lives, a time when COVID won’t be a constant crisis,” Psaki answered. “There’s an active and ongoing work plan to develop a path forward. And there is constant discussion about that.”
It was a content-free answer. The president wants to move forward, and people at the White House are working on it. What does that mean? Psaki recognized that people are tired of wearing masks — “I bet all of you are. I certainly am.” But then she gave the real answer to the question.
There will be no change coming from the White House, Psaki suggested. Not right now. The White House is sticking with the word of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has been, at best, an uncertain voice in the pandemic. “We continue to recommend masking in areas of high and substantial transmission — which is basically the entire country at this point,” Psaki said. “That’s essentially everywhere — for indoor settings.”
Just to make sure everyone understood, Psaki repeated herself: “Our guidance has consistently been this: When you are in a high-transmission area, which is everywhere in the country, you should wear a mask in indoor settings, including schools.”
Everywhere in the country. Psaki’s statement put the White House way out of line with the actions not only of Republican governors and local officials but now many Democrats as well. Nevertheless, the White House sticks with the CDC. A moment later, a reporter asked Psaki, “Does the CDC run the risk of becoming irrelevant in the minds of many Americans, given that their states are moving ahead without them?”
The question could have been asked a little differently. Since Biden is all-in with the CDC, does the president run the risk of becoming irrelevant in the minds of many Americans? The answer, of course, is yes. Psaki, by the way, answered weakly, “Well, I don’t think the federal experts on health and medical advice should be irrelevant to Americans at a time where we’re still facing a pandemic.”
One last note. You don’t hear the White House attacking the Democratic governors of New York, California, and other states over their moves to leave mask mandates behind. That’s a change from the past, when it was Republican governors doing the moving and the White House doing the attacking. “These decisions that are being made at the local level … are out of step with the science that is at the forefront of the CDC, of this White House,” a reporter said to Psaki. “So, why are we not hearing the same messaging criticizing states that are making these moves like we heard previously with, for instance, Ron DeSantis?”
Psaki claimed there is a “distinct difference” involved. Republicans were “standing in the way …threatening to pull back funding [from school districts],” while Democrats are “allowing for local school districts to make choices.” But the answer was obvious. The White House attacks Republicans, not Democrats. It’s as simple as that. But the bigger issue is Biden himself. He said he would lead on the COVID issue, and now he is being left behind.
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