motherjones--2020-07-22--Watch: Mary Trump on Why Donald Trump Lies, Why He’s “Racist,” and Why She Wrote Her Book

Many American families have their dysfunction .
But in only one contemporary American family has the racist , misogynistic , ignorant blowhard uncle become the president of the United States .
What is that like ?
Well , we don ’ t have to guess .
Because Mary L. Trump , the niece of Donald Trump , has written a bestseller about the horrific family environment that produced him .
And this week she talked to Mother Jones about her uncle , her book , and how she came to write it .
After the Trump family went to court @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last week and has reportedly sold a million copies .
This memoir/psychological dissection , Too Much and Never Enough : How My Family Created the World ’ s Most Dangerous Man , is a harrowing account of a man and a clan shaped by ego , rivalry , the pursuit of wealth , and profound pathology .
Mary Trump ’ s depiction of her uncle as a broken human being—broken by his father , Fred , a ruthless patriarch with sociopathic traits—is more explanatory than revelatory .
She doesn ’ t show us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seen .
But she explains how and why he became a person more concerned about his TV ratings than the deaths of 140,000 fellow Americans .
I have a bit of a history with Mary Trump going back to 2016 .
Shortly before Election Day that year , I tracked her down .
Throughout the campaign , she had practically no presence within all the stories about Donald Trump and his family .
I hoped that she could provide information on him , the family , and their finances .
After all , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lawsuits against Trump and his siblings—one over the disposition of Fred ’ s estate and one challenging the decision of Trump and his siblings to cut off health insurance for Mary and her brother ’ s families .
( Her brother had an infant son at the time with a serious neurological disorder that resulted in tremendous medical bills . )
Mary returned my call , expressed her horror at the prospect of her uncle becoming the most powerful man in the world , and explained that Fred , with Donald , had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was not the most evil man in the world , she remarked to me ; Fred was .
But she said she could not speak on the record about any of this .
( She has now given me permission to reveal our communications from that time . )
I chased Mary as a source for months and years , sensing she had much to share .
I never persuaded her to go public .
But now she has done so , and as her book has become a publishing sensation , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her .
And I could ask her why she thanked me in her acknowledgments .
Explaining why she did not come forward at the time of the 2016 election , Mary noted in our interview , “ I didn ’ t feel it would make a difference.
” She believed she didn ’ t have that much to offer and would be dismissed as a disgruntled relative still upset over being screwed during the battle over Fred ’ s estate .
She was also fearful of retribution from the Trump crew : “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ She explained that she had forgotten that within the records of her lawsuits were loads of documents detailing Trump family finances .
It was when the New York Times came knocking in the spring of 2017 , in search of this material , that Mary realized she possessed significant information related to Donald Trump .
After persistent coaxing from a Times reporter , she retrieved the material from her lawyer ’ s storage facility and handed it over to the newspaper .
About a year later , the Times , using these documents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump and his family had committed fraud to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes .
( The story also revealed that Trump had received about $ 413 million from his father , far more than the mere pittance of a $ 1 million loan that he had claimed . )
Mary ’ s involvement with this project got her thinking : She did have something to say about Trump and her family .
Soon she was contemplating writing a book .
In the interview , Mary , who has a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ main thesis : Fred Trump was a “ straight-up sociopath ” who psychologically destroyed his oldest son and her father , Freddy , who wanted to be a commercial pilot rather than take over the family real estate business , and Donald Trump was permanently warped by witnessing this abuse and by other dysfunction within the family .
Donald , Mary said , “ learned…in order to be safe , in order to protect himself from my grandfather ’ s cruelty , he needed to make himself in his dad ’ s image @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expense of his humanity .
My grandfather had no redeeming characteristics…and [ Donald Trump ] no longer does.
” She added that there “ was a point [ Trump ] wasn ’ t so cruel , not so deliberatively divisive.
” One Trump family mystery involves a 1927 New York Times story that reported Fred Trump was arrested at a KKK rally and march in Jamaica , Queens .
The article didn ’ t say why Fred was detained and gave no indication if he had been there as a supporter or opponent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mary about this , she replied that she never heard this matter discussed within her family , but she added , “ I have no doubt which side he would ’ ve been on.
” Fred , she explained , was “ quite anti-Semitic , ” and , as she has said elsewhere , the n-word was routinely used within her family circle .
She also shared her view that Donald Trump inherited his father ’ s bigotry .
“ He ’ s racist , ” Mary said of her uncle .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ straightforwardly.
” I asked Mary if she could explain Donald ’ s affinity for Vladimir Putin and other authoritarian rulers .
And she could : “ I think he sees in somebody like a Putin or a Kim Jong Un or a Duterte or an Erdoğan a person who has a lot of power and by associating with them it sort of confers on him that aura of strength and invincibility .
And who cares what that leads to ?
Concentration camps in China .
Or disappearing people .
If he ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then it reflects on him.
” So could she answer for me a question that I ’ ve pondered for years : Does Donald Trump believe his own lies ?
After all , does Trump truly think he is the smartest guy of all time , that he knows more than the generals , that he ’ s been more right about the coronavirus pandemic than anyone else , that his polls are great , that he has achieved more than any other president , and blah , blah , blah ?
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Mary said .
“ It depends on the circumstances.
” She continued : “ The more stress he ’ s under , the more besieged he feels , the more likely it is that the distance between the telling the lie and believing it is the truth is decreasing .
We ’ re getting to the point it ’ s instantaneous.
” I pressed her on this point .
Does he lie ( so much ! )
as a means to get what he wants and knows this is what he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It ’ s a combination , ” she said .
“ Is it just delusion or is it a tactic ?
I think it might start out as a tactic but it ends up being a delusion because his need to perpetuate a narrative about himself—a very specific narrative about himself as the winner , as always being right—is decades old .
It ’ s a defense mechanism to protect him against the reality of who he really is…If he had any insight into that , I don ’ t know that he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s book is a deep dive into Trump ’ s damaged psyche , and it does ring true—especially at a time when Americans are watching him botch the response to a pandemic due to his narcissism , ignorance , and lack of compassion .
But does her analysis provide an escape route for her uncle—he ’ s harming the nation because he was harmed as a child ?
Does this , I asked Mary , absolve Trump ?
“ I can ’ t say this emphatically enough , ” she replied .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any way intended to let him off the hook .
He ’ s a responsible—he ’ s responsible for his actions .
He ’ s an adult human being who knows the difference between right and wrong .
He just doesn ’ t think it applies to him .
But he knows the difference .
The point of the analysis of his developmental history was in its explanatory power…Even I feel sympathy for Donald the 2-and-a-half-year-old .
A lot of people who end up being horrible criminals when they are adults had very @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for that child .
It does not at all , under any circumstances , diminish their responsibility for what they do…He does not get a pass .
He needs to be held to account .
Very seriously held to an account when this nightmare we ’ re living through is over .
”

Many American families have their dysfunction. But in only one contemporary American family has the racist, misogynistic, ignorant blowhard uncle become the president of the United States. What is that like? Well, we don’t have to guess. Because Mary L. Trump, the niece of Donald Trump, has written a bestseller about the horrific family environment that produced him. And this week she talked to Mother Jones about her uncle, her book, and how she came to write it.
After the Trump family went to court to stop the book—and lost—it was published last week and has reportedly sold a million copies. This memoir/psychological dissection, Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man, is a harrowing account of a man and a clan shaped by ego, rivalry, the pursuit of wealth, and profound pathology. Mary Trump’s depiction of her uncle as a broken human being—broken by his father, Fred, a ruthless patriarch with sociopathic traits—is more explanatory than revelatory. She doesn’t show us a Trump we haven’t already seen. But she explains how and why he became a person more concerned about his TV ratings than the deaths of 140,000 fellow Americans.
I have a bit of a history with Mary Trump going back to 2016. Shortly before Election Day that year, I tracked her down. Throughout the campaign, she had practically no presence within all the stories about Donald Trump and his family. I hoped that she could provide information on him, the family, and their finances. After all, she had been involved in two bitter lawsuits against Trump and his siblings—one over the disposition of Fred’s estate and one challenging the decision of Trump and his siblings to cut off health insurance for Mary and her brother’s families. (Her brother had an infant son at the time with a serious neurological disorder that resulted in tremendous medical bills.) Mary returned my call, expressed her horror at the prospect of her uncle becoming the most powerful man in the world, and explained that Fred, with Donald, had raised a mini-me sociopath. Donald Trump was not the most evil man in the world, she remarked to me; Fred was. But she said she could not speak on the record about any of this. (She has now given me permission to reveal our communications from that time.)
I chased Mary as a source for months and years, sensing she had much to share. I never persuaded her to go public. But now she has done so, and as her book has become a publishing sensation, I was finally able to talk openly with her. And I could ask her why she thanked me in her acknowledgments.
Explaining why she did not come forward at the time of the 2016 election, Mary noted in our interview, “I didn’t feel it would make a difference.” She believed she didn’t have that much to offer and would be dismissed as a disgruntled relative still upset over being screwed during the battle over Fred’s estate. She was also fearful of retribution from the Trump crew: “They’re very vindictive people.” She explained that she had forgotten that within the records of her lawsuits were loads of documents detailing Trump family finances. It was when the New York Times came knocking in the spring of 2017, in search of this material, that Mary realized she possessed significant information related to Donald Trump. After persistent coaxing from a Times reporter, she retrieved the material from her lawyer’s storage facility and handed it over to the newspaper. About a year later, the Times, using these documents, produced a blockbuster report showing that Trump and his family had committed fraud to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes. (The story also revealed that Trump had received about $413 million from his father, far more than the mere pittance of a $1 million loan that he had claimed.) Mary’s involvement with this project got her thinking: She did have something to say about Trump and her family. Soon she was contemplating writing a book.
In the interview, Mary, who has a PhD in clinical psychology, discussed her main thesis: Fred Trump was a “straight-up sociopath” who psychologically destroyed his oldest son and her father, Freddy, who wanted to be a commercial pilot rather than take over the family real estate business, and Donald Trump was permanently warped by witnessing this abuse and by other dysfunction within the family. Donald, Mary said, “learned…in order to be safe, in order to protect himself from my grandfather’s cruelty, he needed to make himself in his dad’s image, which I think was at the expense of his humanity. My grandfather had no redeeming characteristics…and [Donald Trump] no longer does.” She added that there “was a point [Trump] wasn’t so cruel, not so deliberatively divisive.”
One Trump family mystery involves a 1927 New York Times story that reported Fred Trump was arrested at a KKK rally and march in Jamaica, Queens. The article didn’t say why Fred was detained and gave no indication if he had been there as a supporter or opponent of the KKK. When I asked Mary about this, she replied that she never heard this matter discussed within her family, but she added, “I have no doubt which side he would’ve been on.” Fred, she explained, was “quite anti-Semitic,” and, as she has said elsewhere, the n-word was routinely used within her family circle.
She also shared her view that Donald Trump inherited his father’s bigotry. “He’s racist,” Mary said of her uncle. “It has to be said honestly and straightforwardly.”
“He’s racist. It has to be said honestly and straightforwardly.” —Mary Trump, on her uncle, Donald Trump https://t.co/1kmOT7rvp7 pic.twitter.com/ooZi8B4CNk — Mother Jones (@MotherJones) July 22, 2020
I asked Mary if she could explain Donald’s affinity for Vladimir Putin and other authoritarian rulers. And she could: “I think he sees in somebody like a Putin or a Kim Jong Un or a Duterte or an Erdoğan a person who has a lot of power and by associating with them it sort of confers on him that aura of strength and invincibility. And who cares what that leads to? Concentration camps in China. Or disappearing people. If he’s associated with that [power], then it reflects on him.”
So could she answer for me a question that I’ve pondered for years: Does Donald Trump believe his own lies? After all, does Trump truly think he is the smartest guy of all time, that he knows more than the generals, that he’s been more right about the coronavirus pandemic than anyone else, that his polls are great, that he has achieved more than any other president, and blah, blah, blah? “Very often he is lying to himself,” Mary said. “It depends on the circumstances.” She continued: “The more stress he’s under, the more besieged he feels, the more likely it is that the distance between the telling the lie and believing it is the truth is decreasing. We’re getting to the point it’s instantaneous.”
I pressed her on this point. Does he lie (so much!) as a means to get what he wants and knows this is what he is doing—or is he delusional? “It’s a combination,” she said. “Is it just delusion or is it a tactic? I think it might start out as a tactic but it ends up being a delusion because his need to perpetuate a narrative about himself—a very specific narrative about himself as the winner, as always being right—is decades old. It’s a defense mechanism to protect him against the reality of who he really is…If he had any insight into that, I don’t know that he could bear it.”
Mary Trump’s book is a deep dive into Trump’s damaged psyche, and it does ring true—especially at a time when Americans are watching him botch the response to a pandemic due to his narcissism, ignorance, and lack of compassion. But does her analysis provide an escape route for her uncle—he’s harming the nation because he was harmed as a child? Does this, I asked Mary, absolve Trump? “I can’t say this emphatically enough,” she replied. “Absolutely not. This was not in any way intended to let him off the hook. He’s a responsible—he’s responsible for his actions. He’s an adult human being who knows the difference between right and wrong. He just doesn’t think it applies to him. But he knows the difference. The point of the analysis of his developmental history was in its explanatory power…Even I feel sympathy for Donald the 2-and-a-half-year-old. A lot of people who end up being horrible criminals when they are adults had very abusive childhoods. You can have sympathy for that child. It does not at all, under any circumstances, diminish their responsibility for what they do…He does not get a pass. He needs to be held to account. Very seriously held to an account when this nightmare we’re living through is over.”


motherjones--2020-07-22--Senators Introduced a Bill to Restore the Voting Rights Act. It’s Named After John Lewis.

Forty-eight senators introduced legislation on Wednesday to restore the Voting Rights Act after it was gutted by the Supreme Court in 2013 .
The lawmakers named the new bill after civil rights icon John Lewis , a member of Congress from Georgia who passed away Friday .
The “ John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act ” —sponsored by 47 Democrats and Republican Lisa Murkowski ( Alaska ) —would require that any state with a history of voting discrimination within the past 25 years seek federal approval before making any changes to its voting procedures .
And it would mandate that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , obtain clearance from the Justice Department or a federal court in Washington , DC , before making any changes that would tend to burden voters of color , such as strict voter ID laws or closing polling places in areas with large numbers of minority voters .
In December , Lewis presided over the Democratic-controlled House as it passed identical legislation to restore the VRA .
But Republicans have refused to take up the bill in the Senate , which has now been reintroduced and renamed after Lewis .
Lewis nearly died @ @ @ @ @ @ @ beaten by Alabama state troopers during a voting rights march in Selma—an event that helped lead to the passage of the original Voting Rights Act later that year .
Lewis devoted his life to expanding access to the ballot , calling the vote “ the most powerful nonviolent tool we have in a democratic society.
” “ We can not claim to honor the life of John Lewis if we refuse to carry on his life ’ s work , ” Sen. Patrick Leahy ( D-Vt. ) , the chief sponsor of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Senate on Wednesday .
“ Or worse , if we stand in the way of that work.
” As I explain in a new video for Mother Jones , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ( R-Ky. ) tweeted his praise for Lewis over the weekend but has been blocking a vote on legislation to restore the VRA for more than 225 days .

Forty-eight senators introduced legislation on Wednesday to restore the Voting Rights Act after it was gutted by the Supreme Court in 2013. The lawmakers named the new bill after civil rights icon John Lewis, a member of Congress from Georgia who passed away Friday.
The “John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act”—sponsored by 47 Democrats and Republican Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)—would require that any state with a history of voting discrimination within the past 25 years seek federal approval before making any changes to its voting procedures. And it would mandate that any state, regardless of its history, obtain clearance from the Justice Department or a federal court in Washington, DC, before making any changes that would tend to burden voters of color, such as strict voter ID laws or closing polling places in areas with large numbers of minority voters.
In December, Lewis presided over the Democratic-controlled House as it passed identical legislation to restore the VRA. But Republicans have refused to take up the bill in the Senate, which has now been reintroduced and renamed after Lewis.
Lewis nearly died in March 1965 when he was brutally beaten by Alabama state troopers during a voting rights march in Selma—an event that helped lead to the passage of the original Voting Rights Act later that year. Lewis devoted his life to expanding access to the ballot, calling the vote “the most powerful nonviolent tool we have in a democratic society.”
“We cannot claim to honor the life of John Lewis if we refuse to carry on his life’s work,” Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the chief sponsor of the new legislation, said on the floor of the Senate on Wednesday. “Or worse, if we stand in the way of that work.”
As I explain in a new video for Mother Jones, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) tweeted his praise for Lewis over the weekend but has been blocking a vote on legislation to restore the VRA for more than 225 days.


motherjones--2020-07-22--This Isn’t How You Apologize for Calling a Congresswoman a “Fucking Bitch”

For more than two years , white Republican men have targeted Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez ( D-N.Y ) , who at 30 , is the youngest woman to serve Congress , with a steady stream of racist and sexist attacks .
So while abhorrent , it wasn ’ t exactly surprising to hear that another white Republican man with a track record of arguing that lynching is not a hate crime had harassed Ocasio-Cortez outside the Capitol building on Tuesday and allegedly called her a “ fucking bitch.
” Rep. Ted Yoho quickly claimed that he had merely muttered “ bullshit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ progressive politics .
But not even his own Republican colleagues appeared to be convinced by that denial .
“ We think everyone should show respect to one another , ” House minority leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy , who in the past has defended President Trump ’ s “ send her back ” chants against Democratic congresswomen of color , including Ocasio-Cortez , told reporters as calls for Yoho to apologize mounted on social media and throughout Congress .
Leave it to Yoho himself to further erase the remote plausibility that came with his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The offensive name-calling words attributed to me by the press were never spoken to my colleagues , ” he said Wednesday in a speech on the House floor , “ and if they were construed that way , I apologize for their misunderstanding.
” Yoho ended his remarks , which never referred to Ocasio-Cortez by name , by refusing to “ apologize for my passion or for loving my God , my family , and my country.
” It ’ s hard to tell exactly what ’ s going on here .
One @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attempting to thread the needle between calling Ocasio-Cortex a “ fucking bitch ” to her face and mumbling the sexist slur as he slunk away from the encounter .
But we all know that meaningful contrition doesn ’ t usually rely on obscure denial and the heavy use of the passive voice .

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For more than two years, white Republican men have targeted Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y), who at 30, is the youngest woman to serve Congress, with a steady stream of racist and sexist attacks.
So while abhorrent, it wasn’t exactly surprising to hear that another white Republican man with a track record of arguing that lynching is not a hate crime had harassed Ocasio-Cortez outside the Capitol building on Tuesday and allegedly called her a “fucking bitch.” Rep. Ted Yoho quickly claimed that he had merely muttered “bullshit” in reference to Ocasio-Cortez’s progressive politics. But not even his own Republican colleagues appeared to be convinced by that denial.
“We think everyone should show respect to one another,” House minority leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, who in the past has defended President Trump’s “send her back” chants against Democratic congresswomen of color, including Ocasio-Cortez, told reporters as calls for Yoho to apologize mounted on social media and throughout Congress.
Leave it to Yoho himself to further erase the remote plausibility that came with his initial “bullshit” account.
“The offensive name-calling words attributed to me by the press were never spoken to my colleagues,” he said Wednesday in a speech on the House floor, “and if they were construed that way, I apologize for their misunderstanding.” Yoho ended his remarks, which never referred to Ocasio-Cortez by name, by refusing to “apologize for my passion or for loving my God, my family, and my country.”
It’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on here. One stab at an explanation could see Yoho attempting to thread the needle between calling Ocasio-Cortex a “fucking bitch” to her face and mumbling the sexist slur as he slunk away from the encounter. But we all know that meaningful contrition doesn’t usually rely on obscure denial and the heavy use of the passive voice.


motherjones--2020-07-23--Utah’s GOP Thinks Fox News Can Beat The State’s Only Congressional Democrat

In mid-December , first-term Rep. Ben McAdams ( D-Utah ) was among the last House members to decide how to vote on the articles of impeachment against President Trump .
It was a decision with potentially dire implications for the reelection efforts of the state ’ s only congressional Democrat , who represents a district gerrymandered to favor Republicans .
McAdams defeated incumbent Rep. Mia Love ( R ) by fewer than 700 votes in 2018 .
After he announced his decision to vote for impeachment , the Trump campaign went on the attack , blasting out a statement warning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his cowardice .
McAdams ’ political career is over.
” Outside groups poured money into ads denouncing him .
His approval rating dropped 11 percent .
And then on March 18 , he announced that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus and spent a week in the hospital recovering .
It seemed inevitable that come November , practically any Republican in this conservative district would easily defeat one of the most endangered Democrats in Congress .
Instead , political analysts are cautiously predicting that McAdams will get reelected .
Why ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ nominated former NFL player and Fox News commentator Burgess Owens to run against him .
Owens might be a national figure , beloved on Fox and Friends as one of Trump ’ s few Black acolytes , but he is relatively unknown in Utah .
His campaign illustrates many of the pitfalls of transforming the GOP into the party of Trump , where talking points come from Sean Hannity , the president can do no wrong , and everyone has forgotten Tip O ’ Neill ’ s famous adage that all politics is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tension between being a Fox News pundit and a Republican candidate in a close swing district , ” says Chris Karpowitz , co-director of the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy at Brigham Young University in Provo , Utah .
“ It ’ s also the larger dilemma that Republicans are facing right now : They ’ ve chosen to be the party of Donald Trump .
What happens when the bottom falls out from Donald Trump ’ s popularity ?
Even in a very red place like Utah , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ oneself with Donald Trump.
” The differences between the two candidates go far beyond party affiliation .
While McAdams ’ Utah roots go back seven generations , Owens has lived there less than a decade .
He didn ’ t register to vote in Utah until 2014 , and he doesn ’ t appear to own a house there .
McAdams served in the state senate and was elected mayor of Salt Lake County twice .
Owens has never been elected to anything , has been through two bankruptcies , and has failed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in taxes over the years .
When Owens played in the Super Bowl , his crowning achievement , McAdams was in grade school .
The one thing they have in common is that they ’ re both Mormons .
On TV and in campaign events , Owens froths about the liberal “ enemy ” bent on destroying the country and the president , describing all Democrats as Marxists and socialists .
Meanwhile , McAdams is donating his plasma for coronavirus research and voting in Congress for more national park funding in a state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ race has thrown November ’ s choices into sharp contrast and will be a test of whether a Fox News endorsement is enough to elect a Trump-supporting Republican in a swing district .
“ We have a generic , nationalized campaign going on , ” observes Tim Chambless , a political science professor at the University of Utah .
The impeachment vote “ seems so six months ago , ” McAdams mused on a sunny day in June as we sat in a park near his house in the Sugar House neighborhood of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he still has the mild-mannered boyish appearance of the LDS missionary he once was .
Two of his four school-age kids stopped by and said hello as we talked .
“ My district will ultimately support Trump , ” he told me .
But he thinks Utah voters in the congressional race will “ seek someone who will dial down the rhetoric .
A lot of people are uncomfortable with [ Trump ’ s ] divisive style and want people who can bring some civility to politics.
” McAdams seems nothing but civil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now have given him the highest approval ratings of any member of Utah ’ s congressional delegation .
Salt Lake Tribune political columnist Robert Gehrke wrote recently that his inoffensiveness is “ equaled only by white rice.
” McAdams ’ reelection campaign has been helped by the GOP ’ s disarray—which is unusual given that Republicans hold every statewide office and 80 percent of the state legislative seats .
“ This should have been at the top of the Republicans ’ wish list in terms of new pickups for 2020 , but they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” says Karpowitz .
“ They couldn ’ t recruit more experienced candidates who would have made it a much more competitive race.
” Early frontrunner Utah Senate Majority Whip Dan Hemmert dropped out of the race in December , leaving a primary field crowded with B-listers .
Delegates to the state nominating convention in April failed to coalesce around a single candidate , leaving McAdams without an obvious opponent until Owens won the June 30 GOP primary with 43 percent of the vote .
Now Owens is trying to introduce himself to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his football career—first-round draft pick for the New York Jets in 1973 , a 1981 Super Bowl championship with the Oakland Raiders—and his Fox News appearances .
He draws on a compelling personal story of growing up in segregated Tallahassee and speaks openly about his hard times .
After 10 seasons with the NFL and a failed business venture , he was so strapped for cash that he lived in a basement apartment in Brooklyn with his wife and four kids under ten and supported his family with random jobs like working as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , helped by a corporate job at the Utah-based WordPerfect and eventually a career as a motivational speaker .
Then there are the two bankruptcies , one in 1991 and again in 2001 , and the thousands of dollars ’ worth of tax liens he racked up in New York .
He also once had more than $ 200,000 in unpaid federal taxes .
His financial disclosure statement shows that he still owes the IRS $ 6,500 .
Utah doesn ’ t figure much into the narrative .
Owens apparently owns no property @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state , he hopes to represent .
The Utah address Owens lists in campaign finance documents and corporate records is for a house owned by an LLC controlled by one of his campaign donors , real estate developer William O. Perry III .
( The Owens campaign did not respond to repeated requests for comment . )
Owens ’ daughter Summur-Rayn Berrett , a former flight attendant who is being paid by his campaign for media consulting , is also listed at that address in federal elections filings .
Since 2015 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ entities in Utah , but most are now inactive .
Owens touts his work with the nonprofit he founded called Second Chance 4 Youth , in which he tries to help kids coming out of the juvenile justice system get back on their feet , but it wasn ’ t registered in Utah until June 2019 .
One of the group ’ s board members is Tyler Perry , William O. Perry ’ s son .
In an interview , Tyler Perry says that Owens is a family friend who first met his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Foundation at Valley Forge , a Cold War-era civics group founded with support from President Dwight Eisenhower .
Owens , who was living in Philadelphia at the time , spoke at the event .
William O. Perry III was on the board , and the two hit it off .
When some of his children were attending Brigham Young University , Owens decided to move to Utah .
Tyler Perry says they met about five years ago , and Owens later asked him to help with his nonprofit .
“ Burgess has a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wants to make a positive difference , ” Perry says .
“ From my perspective he ’ s doing a great job of getting out and getting to know a lot of people .
I would think it would be dang hard to come into a new place and put together what he ’ s put together.
” Nonetheless , Owens has some catching up to do .
Everyone in Utah seems to know who McAdams is .
In fact , Perry says some of his friends are close with McAdams and that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Ben ’ s a good guy , ” he says , highlighting the problem with the scorched earth campaign Owens seems to be running .
In May , Owens told Matt Boyle on Breitbart News , “ In the case of Ben McAdams , he is a nice guy , but he stands right there with Nancy Pelosi and Maxine Waters , [ Adam ] Schiff , and the other socialist-Marxists that are trying to take down our country , ” apparently not realizing that McAdams voted against Pelosi for House Speaker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ best positioned to beat Ben McAdams because I will call them what they are : they are bullies and cowards and socialist-Marxists , and I will let them know that we will not stand for it anymore.
” As one anonymous Republican told UtahPolicy.com recently , “ No one , except for a few very right-wing crazies , believes Ben McAdams is a Marxist.
” Born and raised in Utah , McAdams went to the University of Utah and Columbia Law School , where he met his wife , and practiced law in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ firm .
He quickly headed into local government , working for former Salt Lake City mayor Ralph Becker , then serving two years in the Utah state senate before becoming a popular Salt Lake County mayor in 2012 .
During his six years as mayor , McAdams worked on bipartisan issues like homelessness with Utah establishment figures like his friend Josh Romney , one of Mitt ’ s five sons .
Once in Congress , McAdams focused on local issues , particularly his recent efforts to block Trump administration plans to restart nuclear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a subject that often transcends partisan politics in the state .
In the 1950s and early ‘ 60s , the federal government knowingly exposed thousands of Utah residents—known as “ downwinders ” —to high levels of radiation from open-air testing in the Nevada desert .
Many have died from radiation-related cancers , including the state ’ s last Democratic governor , Scott Matheson .
( His son Jim Matheson was the last Democrat to hold the 4th District seat . )
In the 1980s , former Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch ( R @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Act , securing compensation for downwinders sickened by nuclear fallout .
McAdams has opposed Trump ’ s proposal and has successfully inserted language into a defense appropriation bill to block new testing .
Owens , however , is a fan .
On a local talk radio show in June , the host asked Owens if he supported Trump ’ s plan to restart nuclear testing .
“ Absolutely , ” he responded .
“ I will be supporting our president because he supports our country .
He loves our country .
He does @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have some backbone in the House and Senate to make this thing happen really right.
” Later in the interview , Owens reiterated that “ we should be loyal , period ” to leaders who support God , family and country , as he thinks Trump does .
Such comments have raised eyebrows in Utah .
Steve Erickson , a longtime Utah volunteer with Downwinders Inc. , an advocacy group formed in the late 1970s , says sticking with Trump on the nuclear testing issue “ could end up being a strategic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ few ties to Utah win the GOP primary in one of the nation ’ s most competitive congressional races ?
For that he can probably thank Fox News .
Owens is a regular on the conservative news network and has appeared on shows like Fox and Friends to complain about NFL players taking a knee during the National Anthem .
Dubbing himself the “ the anti-Colin Kaepernick , ” Owens testified before Congress last year to oppose reparations for the descendants of slaves , after penning an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ earn slavery reparations .
I don ’ t want them.
” His campaign rhetoric is generic Fox News mixed with pro-football motivational jargon and locker room clichés .
During the GOP primary debate in early June , he highlighted his “ four tenets ” —head , heart , hands and home—that guide him .
But during the media scrum after the debate , Owens couldn ’ t answer a single question about what specifically he planned to do in Congress aside from fighting “ the enemy ” and “ evil at the door @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Owens has expanded on his political views in two books , which express some old-fashioned ideas about women .
In Liberalism or How to Turn Good men into Whiners , Weenies and Wimps , he devotes an entire section to “ chivalry , ” which he believes liberalism has ruined by “ blur [ ing ] the line between genders , thus facilitating and encouraging the demeaning of both.
” For Owens , manhood has a “ divine nature ” that must be deployed “ for the protection and care of womanhood.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ divorced . )
He ’ s also ventured into the world of right-wing conspiracy theories .
In May , he appeared on a QAnon Internet show—which claims a “ deep state ” cabal that runs a pedophile ring is plotting against Trump and his supporters— and asked for support and campaign contributions .
After he jumped into the Utah congressional race , Owens told the Deseret News that President Trump was “ an advocate for Black Americans , Black kids getting educated , having a choice .
I love the fact he ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ jobs.
” Trump had “ done more to help my community come out of the darkness than any president in my lifetime , ” he insisted .
His loyalty was rewarded .
After Owens secured the GOP nomination Trump tweeted an endorsement : But Trump ’ s support for Owens may not translate into votes in November .
Utah has a rather tortured relationship with Trump , who received the lowest percentage of votes in the state than any GOP presidential candidate since George H.W .
Bush in 1992 .
Utah politicians were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the release of the “ Access Hollywood ” tape during the campaign , where Trump admitted to sexually assaulting women .
Most of them eventually endorsed him , but for the first time in its history , the Deseret News , owned by the LDS church , weighed in on the election and called for Trump to resign from his campaign .
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney ( R ) was the only Republican senator to vote in favor of Trump ’ s impeachment and has said he won ’ t vote for him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2016 , Trump won only 39 percent of the voters in McAdams ’ district ; independent Evan McMullin pulled in another 20 percent .
Trump ’ s approval rating among voters in the district is still just 39 percent , and some polling suggests Democratic nominee Joe Biden is leading Trump by five points there .
These numbers may not do much to help Owens knock off a popular incumbent who is headed into the race with a significant fundraising advantage .
McAdams raised $ 3.4 million by the end of June , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ The voters know him .
They elected him twice , ” Chambless says .
“ In contrast , Burgess Owens is relatively unknown except those who watch Fox News.
” Back in the Salt Lake park , McAdams seemed relaxed and sanguine about the race .
He talked about the plasma study he ’ s participating in , and , true to form , pointedly declined to say anything negative about Owens .
“ I take some comfort in telling myself the best way to get reelected is to do my @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This district doesn ’ t belong to the Democratic or Republican Party .
”

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In mid-December, first-term Rep. Ben McAdams (D-Utah) was among the last House members to decide how to vote on the articles of impeachment against President Trump. It was a decision with potentially dire implications for the reelection efforts of the state’s only congressional Democrat, who represents a district gerrymandered to favor Republicans. McAdams defeated incumbent Rep. Mia Love (R) by fewer than 700 votes in 2018.
After he announced his decision to vote for impeachment, the Trump campaign went on the attack, blasting out a statement warning, “Voters won’t forget his cowardice. McAdams’ political career is over.” Outside groups poured money into ads denouncing him. His approval rating dropped 11 percent. And then on March 18, he announced that he had tested positive for the novel coronavirus and spent a week in the hospital recovering.
It seemed inevitable that come November, practically any Republican in this conservative district would easily defeat one of the most endangered Democrats in Congress. Instead, political analysts are cautiously predicting that McAdams will get reelected. Why? Because on June 30, Utah Republicans nominated former NFL player and Fox News commentator Burgess Owens to run against him. Owens might be a national figure, beloved on Fox and Friends as one of Trump’s few Black acolytes, but he is relatively unknown in Utah. His campaign illustrates many of the pitfalls of transforming the GOP into the party of Trump, where talking points come from Sean Hannity, the president can do no wrong, and everyone has forgotten Tip O’Neill’s famous adage that all politics is local.
“There is a deep tension between being a Fox News pundit and a Republican candidate in a close swing district,” says Chris Karpowitz, co-director of the Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. “It’s also the larger dilemma that Republicans are facing right now: They’ve chosen to be the party of Donald Trump. What happens when the bottom falls out from Donald Trump’s popularity? Even in a very red place like Utah, there are limits to the attempt to align oneself with Donald Trump.”
The differences between the two candidates go far beyond party affiliation. While McAdams’ Utah roots go back seven generations, Owens has lived there less than a decade. He didn’t register to vote in Utah until 2014, and he doesn’t appear to own a house there. McAdams served in the state senate and was elected mayor of Salt Lake County twice. Owens has never been elected to anything, has been through two bankruptcies, and has failed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes over the years. When Owens played in the Super Bowl, his crowning achievement, McAdams was in grade school. The one thing they have in common is that they’re both Mormons.
On TV and in campaign events, Owens froths about the liberal “enemy” bent on destroying the country and the president, describing all Democrats as Marxists and socialists. Meanwhile, McAdams is donating his plasma for coronavirus research and voting in Congress for more national park funding in a state that has five of them. The race has thrown November’s choices into sharp contrast and will be a test of whether a Fox News endorsement is enough to elect a Trump-supporting Republican in a swing district.
“We have a generic, nationalized campaign going on,” observes Tim Chambless, a political science professor at the University of Utah.
The impeachment vote “seems so six months ago,” McAdams mused on a sunny day in June as we sat in a park near his house in the Sugar House neighborhood of Salt Lake City. At 45, he still has the mild-mannered boyish appearance of the LDS missionary he once was. Two of his four school-age kids stopped by and said hello as we talked.
“My district will ultimately support Trump,” he told me. But he thinks Utah voters in the congressional race will “seek someone who will dial down the rhetoric. A lot of people are uncomfortable with [Trump’s] divisive style and want people who can bring some civility to politics.” McAdams seems nothing but civil and soft-spoken, qualities that post-impeachment may now have given him the highest approval ratings of any member of Utah’s congressional delegation. Salt Lake Tribune political columnist Robert Gehrke wrote recently that his inoffensiveness is “equaled only by white rice.”
McAdams’ reelection campaign has been helped by the GOP’s disarray—which is unusual given that Republicans hold every statewide office and 80 percent of the state legislative seats. “This should have been at the top of the Republicans’ wish list in terms of new pickups for 2020, but they seemed to struggle from the get-go,” says Karpowitz. “They couldn’t recruit more experienced candidates who would have made it a much more competitive race.”
“This should have been at the top of the Republicans’ wish list in terms of new pickups for 2020, but they seemed to struggle from the get-go.”
Early frontrunner Utah Senate Majority Whip Dan Hemmert dropped out of the race in December, leaving a primary field crowded with B-listers. Delegates to the state nominating convention in April failed to coalesce around a single candidate, leaving McAdams without an obvious opponent until Owens won the June 30 GOP primary with 43 percent of the vote.
Now Owens is trying to introduce himself to the general electorate. Campaign materials highlight his football career—first-round draft pick for the New York Jets in 1973, a 1981 Super Bowl championship with the Oakland Raiders—and his Fox News appearances. He draws on a compelling personal story of growing up in segregated Tallahassee and speaks openly about his hard times. After 10 seasons with the NFL and a failed business venture, he was so strapped for cash that he lived in a basement apartment in Brooklyn with his wife and four kids under ten and supported his family with random jobs like working as a chimney sweep. Recovery came slowly, helped by a corporate job at the Utah-based WordPerfect and eventually a career as a motivational speaker.
Then there are the two bankruptcies, one in 1991 and again in 2001, and the thousands of dollars’ worth of tax liens he racked up in New York. He also once had more than $200,000 in unpaid federal taxes. His financial disclosure statement shows that he still owes the IRS $6,500.
Utah doesn’t figure much into the narrative. Owens apparently owns no property in the district, not to mention the state, he hopes to represent. The Utah address Owens lists in campaign finance documents and corporate records is for a house owned by an LLC controlled by one of his campaign donors, real estate developer William O. Perry III. (The Owens campaign did not respond to repeated requests for comment.) Owens’ daughter Summur-Rayn Berrett, a former flight attendant who is being paid by his campaign for media consulting, is also listed at that address in federal elections filings. Since 2015, Owens has registered a number of business entities in Utah, but most are now inactive.
Owens touts his work with the nonprofit he founded called Second Chance 4 Youth, in which he tries to help kids coming out of the juvenile justice system get back on their feet, but it wasn’t registered in Utah until June 2019. One of the group’s board members is Tyler Perry, William O. Perry’s son. In an interview, Tyler Perry says that Owens is a family friend who first met his father at an event at the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, a Cold War-era civics group founded with support from President Dwight Eisenhower. Owens, who was living in Philadelphia at the time, spoke at the event. William O. Perry III was on the board, and the two hit it off.
When some of his children were attending Brigham Young University, Owens decided to move to Utah. Tyler Perry says they met about five years ago, and Owens later asked him to help with his nonprofit. “Burgess has a huge heart and everywhere he goes he wants to make a positive difference,” Perry says. “From my perspective he’s doing a great job of getting out and getting to know a lot of people. I would think it would be dang hard to come into a new place and put together what he’s put together.”
Nonetheless, Owens has some catching up to do. Everyone in Utah seems to know who McAdams is. In fact, Perry says some of his friends are close with McAdams and that his brother also knows him well. “Ben’s a good guy,” he says, highlighting the problem with the scorched earth campaign Owens seems to be running. In May, Owens told Matt Boyle on Breitbart News, “In the case of Ben McAdams, he is a nice guy, but he stands right there with Nancy Pelosi and Maxine Waters, [Adam] Schiff, and the other socialist-Marxists that are trying to take down our country,” apparently not realizing that McAdams voted against Pelosi for House Speaker. “I’m the person best positioned to beat Ben McAdams because I will call them what they are: they are bullies and cowards and socialist-Marxists, and I will let them know that we will not stand for it anymore.” As one anonymous Republican told UtahPolicy.com recently, “No one, except for a few very right-wing crazies, believes Ben McAdams is a Marxist.”
Born and raised in Utah, McAdams went to the University of Utah and Columbia Law School, where he met his wife, and practiced law in New York City before joining a Utah firm. He quickly headed into local government, working for former Salt Lake City mayor Ralph Becker, then serving two years in the Utah state senate before becoming a popular Salt Lake County mayor in 2012. During his six years as mayor, McAdams worked on bipartisan issues like homelessness with Utah establishment figures like his friend Josh Romney, one of Mitt’s five sons.
Once in Congress, McAdams focused on local issues, particularly his recent efforts to block Trump administration plans to restart nuclear weapons testing in Nevada. Nuclear testing is a subject that often transcends partisan politics in the state. In the 1950s and early ‘60s, the federal government knowingly exposed thousands of Utah residents—known as “downwinders”—to high levels of radiation from open-air testing in the Nevada desert. Many have died from radiation-related cancers, including the state’s last Democratic governor, Scott Matheson. (His son Jim Matheson was the last Democrat to hold the 4th District seat.) In the 1980s, former Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch (R) helped pass the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, securing compensation for downwinders sickened by nuclear fallout.
“I will be supporting our president because he supports our country…He just needs to have some backbone in the House and Senate to make this thing happen really right.”
McAdams has opposed Trump’s proposal and has successfully inserted language into a defense appropriation bill to block new testing. Owens, however, is a fan. On a local talk radio show in June, the host asked Owens if he supported Trump’s plan to restart nuclear testing. “Absolutely,” he responded. “I will be supporting our president because he supports our country. He loves our country. He does it for free. He just needs to have some backbone in the House and Senate to make this thing happen really right.” Later in the interview, Owens reiterated that “we should be loyal, period” to leaders who support God, family and country, as he thinks Trump does.
Such comments have raised eyebrows in Utah. Steve Erickson, a longtime Utah volunteer with Downwinders Inc., an advocacy group formed in the late 1970s, says sticking with Trump on the nuclear testing issue “could end up being a strategic mistake.”
How did someone with so few ties to Utah win the GOP primary in one of the nation’s most competitive congressional races? For that he can probably thank Fox News. Owens is a regular on the conservative news network and has appeared on shows like Fox and Friends to complain about NFL players taking a knee during the National Anthem. Dubbing himself the “the anti-Colin Kaepernick,” Owens testified before Congress last year to oppose reparations for the descendants of slaves, after penning an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal arguing, “I didn’t earn slavery reparations. I don’t want them.”
His campaign rhetoric is generic Fox News mixed with pro-football motivational jargon and locker room clichés. During the GOP primary debate in early June, he highlighted his “four tenets” —head, heart, hands and home—that guide him. But during the media scrum after the debate, Owens couldn’t answer a single question about what specifically he planned to do in Congress aside from fighting “the enemy” and “evil at the door,” also known as Democrats.
Owens has expanded on his political views in two books, which express some old-fashioned ideas about women. In Liberalism or How to Turn Good men into Whiners, Weenies and Wimps, he devotes an entire section to “chivalry,” which he believes liberalism has ruined by “blur[ing] the line between genders, thus facilitating and encouraging the demeaning of both.” For Owens, manhood has a “divine nature” that must be deployed “for the protection and care of womanhood.” (Perhaps not surprisingly, Owens is divorced.) He’s also ventured into the world of right-wing conspiracy theories. In May, he appeared on a QAnon Internet show—which claims a “deep state” cabal that runs a pedophile ring is plotting against Trump and his supporters— and asked for support and campaign contributions.
After he jumped into the Utah congressional race, Owens told the Deseret News that President Trump was “an advocate for Black Americans, Black kids getting educated, having a choice. I love the fact he’s all about having Black Americans having jobs.” Trump had “done more to help my community come out of the darkness than any president in my lifetime,” he insisted. His loyalty was rewarded. After Owens secured the GOP nomination Trump tweeted an endorsement:
Congratulations, @BurgessOwens, on your impressive primary victory! A Super Bowl Champion, Burgess knows how to WIN. Strong on Life, Military, Vets and the #2A, he will always fight for Utah. Burgess has my Complete and Total Endorsement! #UT04 https://t.co/UppUx24FXx — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 3, 2020
But Trump’s support for Owens may not translate into votes in November. Utah has a rather tortured relationship with Trump, who received the lowest percentage of votes in the state than any GOP presidential candidate since George H.W. Bush in 1992. Utah politicians were among the loudest voices denouncing Trump after the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape during the campaign, where Trump admitted to sexually assaulting women. Most of them eventually endorsed him, but for the first time in its history, the Deseret News, owned by the LDS church, weighed in on the election and called for Trump to resign from his campaign.
Utah Sen. Mitt Romney (R) was the only Republican senator to vote in favor of Trump’s impeachment and has said he won’t vote for him in November. More importantly, in 2016, Trump won only 39 percent of the voters in McAdams’ district; independent Evan McMullin pulled in another 20 percent. Trump’s approval rating among voters in the district is still just 39 percent, and some polling suggests Democratic nominee Joe Biden is leading Trump by five points there.
These numbers may not do much to help Owens knock off a popular incumbent who is headed into the race with a significant fundraising advantage. McAdams raised $3.4 million by the end of June, dwarfing the $766,000 Owens has raised. “The voters know him. They elected him [mayor] twice,” Chambless says. “In contrast, Burgess Owens is relatively unknown except those who watch Fox News.”
Back in the Salt Lake park, McAdams seemed relaxed and sanguine about the race. He talked about the plasma study he’s participating in, and, true to form, pointedly declined to say anything negative about Owens. “I take some comfort in telling myself the best way to get reelected is to do my job,” McAdams said. “This district doesn’t belong to the Democratic or Republican Party.”


motherjones--2020-07-23--Andy Slavitt on the 3 Things He’d Do to Prepare for the Next Pandemic

As the world grapples with the devastation of the coronavirus , one thing is clear : The United States simply wasn ’ t prepared .
Despite repeated warnings from infectious disease experts , we lacked essential beds , equipment , and medication ; public health advice was confusing , and our leadership offered no clear direction while sidelining credible health professionals and institutions .
Infectious disease experts agree that it ’ s only a matter of time before the next pandemic , and that could be even more deadly .
So how do we fix what COVID has shown was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we ’ re asking experts from a wide range of disciplines one question : What are the most important steps we can take to make sure we ’ re better prepared next time ?
Andy Slavitt knows the ins and outs of public health in America .
After decades of leadership in health care companies , he served under President Obama as the acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , where he was instrumental in implementing the Affordable Care Act .
United States of Care , the nonprofit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , aims to improve access to health care for all Americans .
Slavitt grasped the seriousness of the coronavirus back in February , when he urged the White House to ramp up preparations—and he wasn ’ t shy about criticizing what he saw as a woefully inadequate response .
In March , he predicted the shortage of hospital beds and ventilators .
Since then , he ’ s emerged as an authority on both the medical and political dimensions of COVID-19 .
His podcast , “ In the Bubble , ” tackles vaccine @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deniers , and offers solutions to the emerging hunger crisis as the economy falters .
His prolific Twitter feed is required coronavirus reading—in voicey threads , he contextualizes the torrent of overwhelming pandemic news .
Earlier this week , he summed up what seems like his guiding principle in a single tweet : “ Crises are shorter when governments are better.
” On the three biggest things we can do to prepare for the next pandemic : I gave a speech at School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota in December—little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coming to a pandemic—and I said that the biggest problem in public health is there is no effective public health lobby and no one had put together a case for $ 100 billion of investment in the country ’ s public health infrastructure .
Here we are , $ 4 or $ 5 trillion later , and $ 100 billion seems like a dream .
We need to be able to do very quick tracing and testing and have that infrastructure up and ready to go .
We also need the physical infrastructure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ probably in regional hubs that are continually maintained .
For this particular crisis , we know that looks like masks and shields .
But depending upon how something spreads , it could be other things .
And along with that , we need a domestic drug supply manufacturing capacity so we can control some of the critical medications and not have to rely on overseas trade .
I ’ m quite sure we can get the literal things right .
We probably will never run out of ventilators again .
But it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 9/11 by saying , “ Okay , now we can ’ t bring water into the airport anymore.
” Very literal , right ?
But that will miss the more substantive lesson .
The second category is health care resilience .
We have a health care system where access is tied to employment , and when employment goes down—and it often does in crises like this—people lose access .
Another example is the fee-for-service model in hospitals , which stop getting any money when people stopped using elective services .
This can also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic .
And that money instead is with insurance companies who are supposed to be middlemen .
They ’ re not supposed to be sitting on the money for people .
It should be in the community , investing in public health .
So you have to change the way care providers are paid .
And you have to separate people ’ s access to health care from whether they ’ re working .
The third thing is the psychological element to preparedness .
We don ’ t think about public health events @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t go to a major corporation or a school district and say , “ Who ’ s your expert or leader about the health of the population ?
” And that ’ s going to need to change at every level .
Starting at the federal level , we probably need a cabinet-level position to respond to biological threats , the equivalent of what we did when we created the Department of Homeland Security .
It could be done somewhere else .
But I think you want somebody who has accountability to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tore down the infrastructure , and we can ’ t ever let another president do that again .
The safest way for Congress to do that is to create a cabinet responsibility .
But not just at the federal level .
I think we need to do that at the state level and at the corporate and company level , at the municipality level .
And what that will mean is lots more people having the opportunity within public health as a career .
People could work for Google and be in their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work in a municipality and think about the health issues there .
That ’ s what it ’ s going to take to have more public health consciousness , rather than having to go back to where it was before the pandemic , which is something that can ’ t get funded , or continually gets its funding cut .
On Trump-proofing the public health system : You can ’ t Trump-proof anything .
People who want to destroy things and act like little children and have temper tantrums—you shouldn ’ t elect @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Basically , over time , Trump wanted to neutralize and antagonize the scientific community .
He did the same thing at EPA .
The lesson for the American public is that in electing a president , you ’ re electing the entire government .
But I think if you bake in a cabinet-level position with congressional oversight , you have better checks and balances at least .
And then , of course , you have to have sufficient funding that goes to the states so you don ’ t have to have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ every dollar .
On the culpability of White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx in reopening too early : We can debate whether it was because she was politically trying to please Trump , or because she didn ’ t see and understand the data correctly .
But ultimately she made the wrong call .
And it ’ s not like , “ Oh , well this is 20/20 hindsight , she made a mistake , which happens.
” Everybody saw what she didn ’ t see .
The lesson is not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , it ’ s about Trump .
Because if you cherry-pick the advice you take and make it clear that you only want answers that suit you , then you will pigeonhole yourself .
A good president—and I only have experience with one , President Obama—knows how to seek advice and counsel from all quarters to make sure every option is on the table .
I ’ m pretty certain that if Trump had said , “ I am open to whatever option you want to put on the table , including things @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” she would have put different options on the table .
I think he hedged her into , “ I ’ m opening May 1 , you need to show me how.
” That ’ s not the right way to seek advice from your senior advisors .
I don ’ t let her off the hook .
She made a mistake .
She should have done better .
But it starts with the way Trump manages .
On schools : Next time , it will be great to have red-teamed all of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ school safely if they don ’ t live with anyone immunocompromised ?
Do you have the kind of space you need ?
Can we get better at distance learning ?
And if so , what ’ s the age group where it ’ s effective and ineffective ?
If we ’ re able to know these things going in , then we can have a contingency plan , and it doesn ’ t have to be this kind of crisis .
Right now , we don ’ t have backup plans , because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and efficient .
There ’ s a broad lesson that applies to different elements in society around contingency planning .
One of the fallacies of the idea that you starve the government until you need the government is that you end up spending ten times as much money and you spend it less efficiently than if you spent a little bit preparing .
I was talking to a former Republican congressman , and I said , “ Would you have said yes to increasing people ’ s taxes or increasing the deficit to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that may not occur ?
” And the truth is , in Republican leadership , that wouldn ’ t have stood a chance .
On what we can learn from New York : We learned that a hard lockdown is a critical option that has to be on the table .
They did it all over Europe .
They did it all over Asia .
That is a much better way to get rid of the virus much more quickly .
Cuomo did that .
The second lesson is that when you ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to take criticism , no matter what .
And there ’ s no way to avoid managing in a difficult situation without having people upset with you .
If you communicate with people consistently and openly and honestly , then you have more permission to make tough decisions .
Tough political decisions pay off .
The hard part is they don ’ t pay off immediately .
But you put yourself in an even stronger position politically by being able to make tough decisions when there is evidence that they ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that can be done .
I give Governor Abbott credit in Texas for putting in place the mask mandate .
He didn ’ t do it as quickly as people would have liked him to—yesterday is always better than today , but today is better than tomorrow .
We have governors who are learning from new information and adapting and making better decisions .
I think that ought to be appreciated .
This interview has been edited for length and clarity .

As the world grapples with the devastation of the coronavirus, one thing is clear: The United States simply wasn’t prepared. Despite repeated warnings from infectious disease experts, we lacked essential beds, equipment, and medication; public health advice was confusing, and our leadership offered no clear direction while sidelining credible health professionals and institutions. Infectious disease experts agree that it’s only a matter of time before the next pandemic, and that could be even more deadly. So how do we fix what COVID has shown was broken? In this Mother Jones series, we’re asking experts from a wide range of disciplines one question: What are the most important steps we can take to make sure we’re better prepared next time?
Andy Slavitt knows the ins and outs of public health in America. After decades of leadership in health care companies, he served under President Obama as the acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, where he was instrumental in implementing the Affordable Care Act. United States of Care, the nonprofit he helped build in the years since, aims to improve access to health care for all Americans.
Slavitt grasped the seriousness of the coronavirus back in February, when he urged the White House to ramp up preparations—and he wasn’t shy about criticizing what he saw as a woefully inadequate response. In March, he predicted the shortage of hospital beds and ventilators. Since then, he’s emerged as an authority on both the medical and political dimensions of COVID-19. His podcast, “In the Bubble,” tackles vaccine science, offers advice on confronting mask deniers, and offers solutions to the emerging hunger crisis as the economy falters. His prolific Twitter feed is required coronavirus reading—in voicey threads, he contextualizes the torrent of overwhelming pandemic news. Earlier this week, he summed up what seems like his guiding principle in a single tweet: “Crises are shorter when governments are better.”
“Crises are shorter when governments are better.”
On the three biggest things we can do to prepare for the next pandemic: I gave a speech at School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota in December—little did I know how close we were coming to a pandemic—and I said that the biggest problem in public health is there is no effective public health lobby and no one had put together a case for $100 billion of investment in the country’s public health infrastructure. Here we are, $4 or $5 trillion later, and $100 billion seems like a dream.
We need to be able to do very quick tracing and testing and have that infrastructure up and ready to go. We also need the physical infrastructure, a cache of ready supplies, probably in regional hubs that are continually maintained. For this particular crisis, we know that looks like masks and shields. But depending upon how something spreads, it could be other things. And along with that, we need a domestic drug supply manufacturing capacity so we can control some of the critical medications and not have to rely on overseas trade. I’m quite sure we can get the literal things right. We probably will never run out of ventilators again. But it’s a little bit like responding to 9/11 by saying, “Okay, now we can’t bring water into the airport anymore.” Very literal, right? But that will miss the more substantive lesson.
The second category is health care resilience. We have a health care system where access is tied to employment, and when employment goes down—and it often does in crises like this—people lose access. Another example is the fee-for-service model in hospitals, which stop getting any money when people stopped using elective services. This can also be something we can anticipate in a pandemic. And that money instead is with insurance companies who are supposed to be middlemen. They’re not supposed to be sitting on the money for people. It should be in the community, investing in public health. So you have to change the way care providers are paid. And you have to separate people’s access to health care from whether they’re working.
The third thing is the psychological element to preparedness. We don’t think about public health events. Right now, you can’t go to a major corporation or a school district and say, “Who’s your expert or leader about the health of the population?” And that’s going to need to change at every level. Starting at the federal level, we probably need a cabinet-level position to respond to biological threats, the equivalent of what we did when we created the Department of Homeland Security. It could be done somewhere else. But I think you want somebody who has accountability to the president. We have a president who tore down the infrastructure, and we can’t ever let another president do that again. The safest way for Congress to do that is to create a cabinet responsibility.
But not just at the federal level. I think we need to do that at the state level and at the corporate and company level, at the municipality level. And what that will mean is lots more people having the opportunity within public health as a career. People could work for Google and be in their public health department. Or you could work in a municipality and think about the health issues there. That’s what it’s going to take to have more public health consciousness, rather than having to go back to where it was before the pandemic, which is something that can’t get funded, or continually gets its funding cut.
The lesson for the American public is that in electing a president, you’re electing the entire government.
On Trump-proofing the public health system: You can’t Trump-proof anything. People who want to destroy things and act like little children and have temper tantrums—you shouldn’t elect people like that. Take the CDC: Basically, over time, Trump wanted to neutralize and antagonize the scientific community. He did the same thing at EPA. The lesson for the American public is that in electing a president, you’re electing the entire government.
But I think if you bake in a cabinet-level position with congressional oversight, you have better checks and balances at least. And then, of course, you have to have sufficient funding that goes to the states so you don’t have to have states that are begging and pleading for every dollar.
On the culpability of White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx in reopening too early: We can debate whether it was because she was politically trying to please Trump, or because she didn’t see and understand the data correctly. But ultimately she made the wrong call. And it’s not like, “Oh, well this is 20/20 hindsight, she made a mistake, which happens.” Everybody saw what she didn’t see. The lesson is not: it’s not about Birx, it’s about Trump. Because if you cherry-pick the advice you take and make it clear that you only want answers that suit you, then you will pigeonhole yourself. A good president—and I only have experience with one, President Obama—knows how to seek advice and counsel from all quarters to make sure every option is on the table. I’m pretty certain that if Trump had said, “I am open to whatever option you want to put on the table, including things that keep the government shut down,” she would have put different options on the table. I think he hedged her into, “I’m opening May 1, you need to show me how.” That’s not the right way to seek advice from your senior advisors. I don’t let her off the hook. She made a mistake. She should have done better. But it starts with the way Trump manages.
On schools: Next time, it will be great to have red-teamed all of these situations. Who can go to school safely if they don’t live with anyone immunocompromised? Do you have the kind of space you need? Can we get better at distance learning? And if so, what’s the age group where it’s effective and ineffective? If we’re able to know these things going in, then we can have a contingency plan, and it doesn’t have to be this kind of crisis. Right now, we don’t have backup plans, because in this country, we run real-time and efficient. There’s a broad lesson that applies to different elements in society around contingency planning. One of the fallacies of the idea that you starve the government until you need the government is that you end up spending ten times as much money and you spend it less efficiently than if you spent a little bit preparing. I was talking to a former Republican congressman, and I said, “Would you have said yes to increasing people’s taxes or increasing the deficit to fund the preparation for a low-probability event that may not occur?” And the truth is, in Republican leadership, that wouldn’t have stood a chance.
On what we can learn from New York: We learned that a hard lockdown is a critical option that has to be on the table. They did it all over Europe. They did it all over Asia. That is a much better way to get rid of the virus much more quickly. Cuomo did that. The second lesson is that when you’re the governor, you’re going to take criticism, no matter what. And there’s no way to avoid managing in a difficult situation without having people upset with you. If you communicate with people consistently and openly and honestly, then you have more permission to make tough decisions.
Tough political decisions pay off. The hard part is they don’t pay off immediately. But you put yourself in an even stronger position politically by being able to make tough decisions when there is evidence that they’re going to work. And he shows that can be done. I give Governor Abbott credit in Texas for putting in place the mask mandate. He didn’t do it as quickly as people would have liked him to—yesterday is always better than today, but today is better than tomorrow. We have governors who are learning from new information and adapting and making better decisions. I think that ought to be appreciated.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.


motherjones--2020-07-23--Stephen Miller’s Grandmother Died of COVID-19. Her Son Blames the Trump Administration.

This month , Stephen Miller , the extremist anti-immigrant Trump adviser who has promoted white nationalist ideas , lost a relative to the coronavirus pandemic , and his uncle tells Mother Jones that the Trump administration is partly to blame for this death .
On July 4 , David Glosser , the brother of Miller ’ s mother , posted a Facebook note announcing the death of his mother , Ruth Glosser , who was Miller ’ s maternal grandmother : David Glosser is a retired neuropsychologist and passionate Trump critic who has publicly decried Miller for his anti-immigrant policies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s initial “ lack of a response ” to the coronavirus crisis led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans who might have otherwise survived .
In an interview , he says , “ With the death of my mother , I ’ m angry and outraged at [ Miller ] directly and the administration he has devoted his energy to supporting.
” In response to a request seeking comment from Miller , a White House spokesperson sent Mother Jones this statement : Glosser , a former health professional , posted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a public Facebook page .
Responding to the White House statement , he writes in an email , “ Keeping the tragic facts about COVID deaths of our countrymen and women , young and old , from the American public serves no purpose other than to obscure the need for a coherent national , scientifically based , public health response to save others from this disease .
My mother led a long , satisfying , productive life of family and community service .
She had nothing to be ashamed of , and concealing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ privacy ’ to me , our family , her hundreds of relatives and friends , does nothing to assuage our regret at her loss.
” Moreover , Ruth Glosser ’ s death certificate—which her son shared with Mother Jones—lists her cause of death as “ respiratory arrest ” resulting from “ COVID-19.
” Informed that Ruth Glosser ’ s death certificate cited COVID-19 , the White House spokesperson replied , “ Again , this is categorically false .
She had a mile [ sic ] case of COVID-19 in March .
She was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ quick recovery.
” Miller has played a role in the Trump White House ’ s ineffectual response to the coronavirus crisis .
He was credited with helping to write the Oval Office address Trump delivered on March 11 that was widely panned .
In that speech , Trump branded the coronavirus as the “ foreign virus ” and downplayed the damage already caused by it .
He hailed his administration ’ s actions regarding the growing pandemic , ignoring his recent and repeated efforts to dismiss the threat posed by the virus .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ would suspend all travel from Europe to the United States—a statement that caused panic , as Americans overseas rushed back to the United States and ended up in crammed and unsafe conditions at US airports .
( The ban only applied to foreign citizens . )
In the months since , Miller has attempted to exploit the pandemic to implement anti-immigration measures .
On Facebook , Glosser described his 97-year-old mother as “ a scholar , a social worker , and the teacher of a generation of social work students in Western Pennsylvania @ @ @ @ @ @ @ foster parent ’ s program for children with special needs in Johnstown.
” He added , “ Her passion was the careful documentation of the Glosser family and its flight from Czarist persecution in what is now Belarus to life and freedom in the USA .
An ardent advocate of education , women ’ s rights , and the struggle for civil rights in the USA.
” In an addendum to the post , he pointed out that she had depended on immigrants for her health care : Glosser tells me that he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ political point : “ I wanted to make it clear the best I can that the message the Trump administration pumps out—that immigrants who come here spread death , destruction , disease , and murder—is wrong .
We were those people not too long ago .
That ’ s the story of America.
” Ruth Glosser was living in an assisted living facility in the Los Angeles area .
According to her son , she contracted COVID-19 in early March , when the facility was low on tests and PPE .
One or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , were asymptomatic carriers of the virus , and the disease spread quickly through the facility .
“ She had what might be regarded as a weak case , ” Glosser notes .
“ She survived the immediate acute effects but lost 20 pounds within a few weeks and was very much weakened.
” His mother was hit hard by the neurological side effects and soon began a slow decline : “ She lost the will to eat because of enormous fatigue , enormous confusion , and the loss of her sense of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continued to deteriorate .
Finally , she could not sustain a level of oxygen to remain conscious .
In accordance with her living will , the oxygen was withdrawn .
She basically fell asleep and died.
” Like many other relatives of COVID-19 patients , Glosser found the hardest part of this loss was that he could not visit her because the facility had gone into lockdown : “ We did the best we could with phone calls and the occasional FaceTime .
But as time went by , her ability to focus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I could get only a few words .
‘ I love you.
’ But there was no chance to hold her hand and help her go out easy.
” Glosser has long been a foe of the Trump administration and his nephew .
Shortly before the 2016 election , in a letter to a Pennsylvanian newspaper , he criticized Miller for engineering Trump ’ s assault on immigration .
“ My nephew and I , ” he said , “ must both reflect long and hard on one awful truth .
If in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ built a wall against poor desperate ignorant immigrants of a different religion , like the Glossers , all of us would have gone up the crematoria chimneys with the other six million kinsmen whom we can never know.
” He explains that this letter was written at the behest of several family members to disassociate the family from Miller .
In 2018 , Glosser penned a piece for Politico headlined “ Stephen Miller is an Immigration Hypocrite .
I Know Because I ’ m His Uncle.
” He wrote : “ I have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my nephew , an educated man who is well aware of his heritage , has become the architect of immigration policies that repudiate the very foundation of our family ’ s life in this country .
I shudder at the thought of what would have become of the Glossers had the same policies Stephen so coolly espouses—the travel ban , the radical decrease in refugees , the separation of children from their parents , and even talk of limiting citizenship for legal immigrants—been in effect when Wolf-Leib [ Glosser ] made his desperate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pogroms for the United States .
In response to Miller and his now-wife setting up a wedding gift registry in February , Glosser sent a donation to a refugee relief organization and posted a not-too-subtle explanation on Facebook : Glosser notes that he has watched the Trump administration ’ s management—or mismanagement—of the pandemic with dismay , calling it “ chaotic , incompetent , uninformed , and entirely politically motivated.
” Trump , he asserts , “ is interested in only one thing—his political survival… His initial response to the epidemic was denial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lies.
” Glosser says that he can not blame Trump for the fact that his mother was 97 years old and frail , but he insists “ Trump and his enablers bear tremendous responsibility for the failure to respond and their continued unwillingness to do what public health experts say must be done.
” An effective response , he notes , might have limited the number of deaths to 20,000 : “ So Trump bears substantial responsibility for the deaths of over 100,000 Americans who didn ’ t need to die , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have a family member in the middle of this failure ?
Glosser describes his nephew as “ an ambitious kid ” who “ for some reason decided to become infatuated with the idea of white supremacy ” and who has been obsessed with gaining power and influence .
Miller , Glosser maintains , “ sees Trump as a useful idiot in his quest to advance his white power agenda…He has been able to use Trump to advance his political vendetta against the world.
” Glosser is not surprised that Miller has been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus failure : “ He has no ability to demonstrate empathy.
” Ruth Glosser , according to David Glosser , was highly “ disturbed ” when Trump became president : “ She was terribly torn between the normal love for grandchildren and horror at the racist content of Trump ’ s policies and Stephen ’ s role in it.
” He says he has not heard from Miller since his mother died .
But that is no shocker .
He has not spoken to Miller since the 2016 campaign .

This month, Stephen Miller, the extremist anti-immigrant Trump adviser who has promoted white nationalist ideas, lost a relative to the coronavirus pandemic, and his uncle tells Mother Jones that the Trump administration is partly to blame for this death.
On July 4, David Glosser, the brother of Miller’s mother, posted a Facebook note announcing the death of his mother, Ruth Glosser, who was Miller’s maternal grandmother:
This morning my mother, Ruth Glosser, died of the late effects of COVID-19 like so many thousands of other people; both young and old. She survived the acute infection but was left with lung and neurological damage that destroyed her will to eat and her ability to breathe well enough to sustain arousal and consciousness. Over an 8-week period she gradually slipped away and died peacefully this morning.
David Glosser is a retired neuropsychologist and passionate Trump critic who has publicly decried Miller for his anti-immigrant policies, and he contends that Trump’s initial “lack of a response” to the coronavirus crisis led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans who might have otherwise survived. In an interview, he says, “With the death of my mother, I’m angry and outraged at [Miller] directly and the administration he has devoted his energy to supporting.”
In response to a request seeking comment from Miller, a White House spokesperson sent Mother Jones this statement:
This is categorically false, and a disgusting use of so-called journalism when the family deserves privacy to mourn the loss of a loved one. His grandmother did not pass away from COVID. She was diagnosed with COVID in March and passed away in July so that timeline does not add up at all. His grandmother died peacefully in her sleep from old age. I would hope that you would choose not to go down this road.
Glosser, a former health professional, posted his mother’s death announcement on a public Facebook page. Responding to the White House statement, he writes in an email, “Keeping the tragic facts about COVID deaths of our countrymen and women, young and old, from the American public serves no purpose other than to obscure the need for a coherent national, scientifically based, public health response to save others from this disease. My mother led a long, satisfying, productive life of family and community service. She had nothing to be ashamed of, and concealing her cause of death to offer ‘privacy’ to me, our family, her hundreds of relatives and friends, does nothing to assuage our regret at her loss.”
Moreover, Ruth Glosser’s death certificate—which her son shared with Mother Jones—lists her cause of death as “respiratory arrest” resulting from “COVID-19.”
Informed that Ruth Glosser’s death certificate cited COVID-19, the White House spokesperson replied, “Again, this is categorically false. She had a mile [sic] case of COVID-19 in March. She was never hospitalized and made a full and quick recovery.”
Miller has played a role in the Trump White House’s ineffectual response to the coronavirus crisis. He was credited with helping to write the Oval Office address Trump delivered on March 11 that was widely panned. In that speech, Trump branded the coronavirus as the “foreign virus” and downplayed the damage already caused by it. He hailed his administration’s actions regarding the growing pandemic, ignoring his recent and repeated efforts to dismiss the threat posed by the virus. Trump announced in this speech that he would suspend all travel from Europe to the United States—a statement that caused panic, as Americans overseas rushed back to the United States and ended up in crammed and unsafe conditions at US airports. (The ban only applied to foreign citizens.) In the months since, Miller has attempted to exploit the pandemic to implement anti-immigration measures.
On Facebook, Glosser described his 97-year-old mother as “a scholar, a social worker, and the teacher of a generation of social work students in Western Pennsylvania” who “founded and administered a foster parent’s program for children with special needs in Johnstown.” He added, “Her passion was the careful documentation of the Glosser family and its flight from Czarist persecution in what is now Belarus to life and freedom in the USA. An ardent advocate of education, women’s rights, and the struggle for civil rights in the USA.” In an addendum to the post, he pointed out that she had depended on immigrants for her health care:
I neglected to mention that in mom’s declining years she was lovingly cared for by health aides nurses, and doctors from India, Philippines, Mexico, Nicaragua, Haiti, Korea, El Salvador, Uganda, and Nigeria. Immigrants all of them. I am indebted to them for helping us through some very difficult times. Without them there would be no one to take care of our elderly.
Glosser tells me that he tacked on this comment to register a political point: “I wanted to make it clear the best I can that the message the Trump administration pumps out—that immigrants who come here spread death, destruction, disease, and murder—is wrong. We were those people not too long ago. That’s the story of America.”
Ruth Glosser was living in an assisted living facility in the Los Angeles area. According to her son, she contracted COVID-19 in early March, when the facility was low on tests and PPE. One or more of the staff, he says, were asymptomatic carriers of the virus, and the disease spread quickly through the facility. “She had what might be regarded as a weak case,” Glosser notes. “She survived the immediate acute effects but lost 20 pounds within a few weeks and was very much weakened.” His mother was hit hard by the neurological side effects and soon began a slow decline: “She lost the will to eat because of enormous fatigue, enormous confusion, and the loss of her sense of smell and taste, and her lungs continued to deteriorate. Finally, she could not sustain a level of oxygen to remain conscious. In accordance with her living will, the oxygen was withdrawn. She basically fell asleep and died.”
Like many other relatives of COVID-19 patients, Glosser found the hardest part of this loss was that he could not visit her because the facility had gone into lockdown: “We did the best we could with phone calls and the occasional FaceTime. But as time went by, her ability to focus and to breath and talk diminished. I could get only a few words. ‘I love you.’ But there was no chance to hold her hand and help her go out easy.”
Glosser has long been a foe of the Trump administration and his nephew. Shortly before the 2016 election, in a letter to a Pennsylvanian newspaper, he criticized Miller for engineering Trump’s assault on immigration. “My nephew and I,” he said, “must both reflect long and hard on one awful truth. If in the early 20th century the USA had built a wall against poor desperate ignorant immigrants of a different religion, like the Glossers, all of us would have gone up the crematoria chimneys with the other six million kinsmen whom we can never know.” He explains that this letter was written at the behest of several family members to disassociate the family from Miller.
Video Related: Trump’s First 100 Days of Deadly Coronavirus Denial
In 2018, Glosser penned a piece for Politico headlined “Stephen Miller is an Immigration Hypocrite. I Know Because I’m His Uncle.” He wrote: “I have watched with dismay and increasing horror as my nephew, an educated man who is well aware of his heritage, has become the architect of immigration policies that repudiate the very foundation of our family’s life in this country. I shudder at the thought of what would have become of the Glossers had the same policies Stephen so coolly espouses—the travel ban, the radical decrease in refugees, the separation of children from their parents, and even talk of limiting citizenship for legal immigrants—been in effect when Wolf-Leib [Glosser] made his desperate bid for freedom” and fled anti-Jewish pogroms for the United States.
In response to Miller and his now-wife setting up a wedding gift registry in February, Glosser sent a donation to a refugee relief organization and posted a not-too-subtle explanation on Facebook:
I’ll be making a contribution to HIAS, a world wide agency that serves to protect refugees and helped to rescue my family from Czarist oppression in the Russian Empire in 1906. Had our refugee forebears not been helped to emigrate to the USA, they and their children would have been murdered by the racial madness of Nazism; as were the 74 of our relatives who were shut out of America by the race/religion based immigration exclusion act of 1925 enacted by the “America First” populists of the day. Protect the refugee and welcome the stranger…they built America.
Glosser notes that he has watched the Trump administration’s management—or mismanagement—of the pandemic with dismay, calling it “chaotic, incompetent, uninformed, and entirely politically motivated.” Trump, he asserts, “is interested in only one thing—his political survival… His initial response to the epidemic was denial, distraction, misinformation, propaganda and lies.”
Glosser says that he cannot blame Trump for the fact that his mother was 97 years old and frail, but he insists “Trump and his enablers bear tremendous responsibility for the failure to respond and their continued unwillingness to do what public health experts say must be done.” An effective response, he notes, might have limited the number of deaths to 20,000: “So Trump bears substantial responsibility for the deaths of over 100,000 Americans who didn’t need to die, including my mother.”
What is it like to have a family member in the middle of this failure? Glosser describes his nephew as “an ambitious kid” who “for some reason decided to become infatuated with the idea of white supremacy” and who has been obsessed with gaining power and influence. Miller, Glosser maintains, “sees Trump as a useful idiot in his quest to advance his white power agenda…He has been able to use Trump to advance his political vendetta against the world.” Glosser is not surprised that Miller has been part of the Trump administration’s coronavirus failure: “He has no ability to demonstrate empathy.”
Ruth Glosser, according to David Glosser, was highly “disturbed” when Trump became president: “She was terribly torn between the normal love for grandchildren and horror at the racist content of Trump’s policies and Stephen’s role in it.” He says he has not heard from Miller since his mother died. But that is no shocker. He has not spoken to Miller since the 2016 campaign.