vox--2020-06-08--A detailed timeline of all the ways Trump failed to respond to the coronavirus

A detailed timeline of all the ways Trump failed to respond to the coronavirus Share All sharing options for : A detailed timeline of all the ways Trump failed to respond to the coronavirus A week and a half ago , the US coronavirus death toll surpassed 100,000 — the most in the world , and more than the next three countries combined .
That number has only grown in the days since .
And in the face of that crisis , President Donald Trump has a message for the American people : It was China ’ s fault , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ toll isn ’ t worse is because of his quick action in banning travel from China .
In fact , there are many reasons the US death toll is so high , including a national response plagued by delays at the federal level , wishful thinking by President Trump , the sidelining of experts , a pointed White House campaign to place the blame for the Trump administration ’ s shortcomings on others , and time wasted chasing down false hopes based on poor science .
Often as not , though , rather @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at home , the Trump administration has chosen to focus on its action against China as a benchmark for success — and that ’ s not accidental .
In fact , Trump ’ s quick pivot to blaming China is a deliberate strategy , supposedly backed up by internal Trump campaign polling and designed to obfuscate the details of the truly inadequate US response .
But in the early days of the novel coronavirus pandemic , Trump himself took a very different line on everything from China to the severity of the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the US .
Though White House Coronavirus Task Force member Dr. Anthony Fauci admitted as early as March that the virus could kill 100,000 to 200,000 Americans , Trump has had his own ever-shifting goalposts for what counts as a successful response .
On April 20 , he predicted 50,000 to 60,000 dead from Covid-19 .
A week later , he revised his estimate to 70,000 .
On May 4 , it was 80,000 to 100,000 people , and we now know it will continue to climb past that mark .
Throughout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Trump administration ’ s spin — regarding Trump ’ s own response , China ’ s role , and more — has been misleading , if not outright untrue .
Here ’ s what Trump and the federal government have — and have not — done to respond to the virus .
In late 2019 , the coronavirus wasn ’ t on much of the world ’ s radar .
President Trump was becoming the third president in US history to be impeached .
We now know , however , that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up as early as November .
Here ’ s where things stood late last year : November 17 : Although it was not diagnosed as such at the time , researchers have now identified the first confirmed Covid-19 case as having been seen on November 17 in China ’ s Hubei province .
December 27 : A man in France , who is now the first known Covid-19 patient outside of China , goes to the emergency room with a fever and difficulty breathing .
At the time , Covid-19 was still unheard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : The Wuhan Municipal Health Commission reports the first cluster of cases of a “ pneumonia of unknown cause , ” later identified as Covid-19 , the disease caused by the novel coronavirus , now called SARS-CoV-2 .
Though new discoveries — such as the December case in France mentioned above — keep pushing the timeline of the virus back , much of the world began to take note of a mysterious pneumonia-like illness in China in January 2020 , which at the time was mostly centered in the Hubei province .
On @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( WHO ) published a preliminary news item about the then-unidentified disease ; at the time , it was a relatively distant concern in the US , particularly given the country had yet to see any confirmed cases .
But the coronavirus ’ s threat was of concern to US national security officials , who , as the Washington Post reported in March , were warning Trump of the global danger posed by the virus in daily intelligence briefings as early as January .
Nonetheless , in public comments and tweets , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even as the first US case was reported in Washington state .
He also applauded China ’ s handling of the virus at several points in January , before taking action to protect the US in the form of a limited travel ban from China on January 31 .
Here ’ s what things looked like in January .
January 11 : The first death from a confirmed case of Covid-19 is reported in China .
January 16 : A researcher in Germany develops the first coronavirus test .
January 19 : Human-to-human @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Chinese government .
January 21 : The first confirmed Covid-19 case in the US is reported in Washington state .
January 22 : While at Davos , Trump makes his first public comment on the coronavirus , downplaying the risk in comments to CNBC and CBS News correspondent Paula Reid .
January 24 : Trump praises China ’ s “ efforts and transparency ” and thanks Chinese President Xi Jinping for his response to the virus .
January 29 : Trump receives a briefing on the coronavirus , and asserts that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 24/7.
” January 30 : The WHO declares the coronavirus a global health emergency .
January 30 : Trump suggests that the coronavirus is under control in remarks at a manufacturing plant in Michigan : January 31 : Trump suspends entry to the US for many — but not all — categories of people traveling from China , a move which some epidemiologists warned at the time was “ more of an emotional or political reaction ” than a public health decision .
The Department of Health and Human Services declares the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with a State of the Union address on February 4 , and the first US Covid-19 death followed on February 6 in California ’ s Bay Area .
The majority of the coronavirus messaging coming from the White House , however , continued to focus on downplaying the virus rather than bracing for the now-realized possibility that it could become a full-blown pandemic and a global public health crisis .
The Trump administration did take a few steps toward crafting a federal response , requesting emergency funding from Congress and setting up a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at its head .
Meanwhile , Trump — and Fox News — leaned hard into portraying the coronavirus as under control , and even as a Democratic hoax .
As a result , February was by and large a lost month : Delays in developing a test kit were followed by testing shortages , and both issues meant the coronavirus was able to spread undetected and unabated in many parts of the country .
Here ’ s what things looked like in February .
February 4 : Trump gives the annual State of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US response to the coronavirus in his speech .
February 5 : The Food and Drug Administration issues an emergency use authorization for a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) coronavirus test , clearing the way for it to be used in state labs .
February 6 : The first death in the US from a confirmed case of Covid-19 is retroactively confirmed to have occurred in early February by the Santa Clara County medical examiner following an autopsy of the victim .
February 7 : Trump again praises Xi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ February 15 : The first death in Europe from a confirmed case of Covid-19 is reported in France .
February 23 : Trump again claims that the coronavirus is “ under control ” in an impromptu South Lawn press conference with Marine One waiting to depart to Andrews Air Force Base ahead of a trip to India .
February 24 : In a tweet , Trump reiterates his claim that the virus is “ very much under control in the USA.
” February 25 : Trump requests $ 2.5 billion in coronavirus response @ @ @ @ @ @ @ testing , PPE , and more .
February 26 : The first instance of community spread in the US is confirmed by the CDC .
February 26 : Trump appoints Pence to lead the coronavirus task force ; during the same press conference , he again downplays the virus .
February 27 : Trump predicts that the coronavirus will disappear “ like a miracle.
” February 28 : Trump refers to the coronavirus as the Democrats ’ “ new hoax ” at a rally in South Carolina .
In March , the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on daily life in a major way .
The NBA shut down on March 11 , the same night Trump addressed the nation in primetime from the Oval Office , announcing a European travel ban and promising economic relief efforts .
Not long after that speech , California became the first state to implement a general stay-at-home order on March 19 .
By the end of the month , more than 30 states had done the same , and those shutdowns — a public health necessity , in the opinion of most experts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ screeching halt .
As a result , it ’ s maybe not surprising that Trump , who has previously tied his reelection pitch directly to the economy , spent much of the month broadcasting an unwarranted optimism about the trajectory of the virus and promoting potential treatments like hydroxychloroquine — which the FDA has since warned against using for Covid-19 treatment or prevention , noting it can cause heart problems .
The growing severity of the pandemic , however , also led to a mid-March social distancing push from the White House .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ announced a new slate of guidelines advising against discretionary travel and against congregating in groups of more than 10 people .
And toward the end of the month , the growing death toll from the coronavirus — centered on New York , Trump ’ s longtime home — appeared to have an impact on the president .
In a press conference , he acknowledged that the first half of April was “ going to be a rough two-week period ” and walked back previous statements downplaying the coronavirus by comparing it to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things looked like in March .
March 5 : Trump suggests that closing the US to travel from China helped to keep the number of Covid-19 cases low .
March 6 : At the CDC headquarters in Atlanta , Georgia , Trump says falsely that “ anybody that wants a test can get a test ” ; he also comments that he would rather have infected people who were trapped on a cruise ship stay there to keep the number of confirmed US cases low .
March 9 : Trump compares the coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which at that time had already been debunked by experts including Dr. Anthony Fauci .
March 11 : The WHO officially labels the coronavirus a pandemic .
March 11 : Trump makes an error-ridden primetime address from the Oval Office that coincides with Tom Hanks announcing his coronavirus diagnosis and the NBA suspending its season .
March 13 : Trump declares a national emergency in response to the coronavirus , freeing up billions in federal funding for the virus response .
March 18 : Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mutually close @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Defense Production Act ( DPA ) in order to push domestic manufacturing industries to produce badly needed medical supplies .
March 19 : Trump incorrectly claims that the Food and Drug Administration ( FDA ) approved the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine for treating Covid-19 .
March 19 : Trump labels the coronavirus the “ Chinese Virus ” in a press conference ; photos show that he revised prepared remarks to add the xenophobic term .
March 20 : Trump touts hydroxychloroquine , a malaria drug unproven as a Covid-19 treatment , at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; in the same exchange , he attacks NBC News correspondent Peter Alexander as a “ terrible reporter.
” March 22 : As the economic impact of coronavirus lockdowns becomes more apparent , Trump shies away from a prolonged shutdown following a historically bad day for the Dow Jones stock index the previous week .
March 27 : Trump attacks General Motors CEO Mary Barra on Twitter over ventilator manufacturing amid a desperate shortage of the machines , and threatens to “ invoke ‘ P ’ ” — the Defense Production Act — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the first of many such threats made against companies producing essential materials .
March 27 : Trump signs a $ 2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package that includes direct cash payments to Americans , additional funding for hospitals , and some $ 500 billion in loans for companies .
March 29 : Trump extends CDC social distancing guidance through April 30 ; in the Rose Garden , he also says he believes his administration will have “ done a very good job ” if the US avoids the worst-case 2.2 million deaths predicted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ March 31 : Trump drops his comparison to the flu , saying the coronavirus is “ vicious ” : For all that Trump spent January and February praising China ’ s response to the coronavirus , April saw his White House execute an about-face as the human and economic toll of the pandemic in the US mounted .
The president began to blame China , Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden , and the WHO for problems with America ’ s Covid-19 response .
And Democratic governors , like Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump administration ’ s response to the crisis , became targets of his ire .
Here ’ s what things looked like in April .
April 2 : Trump employs the DPA to direct 3M and other companies to manufacture masks and ventilators : April 4 : Trump again invokes the DPA to combat the hoarding of medical supplies by “ wartime profiteers.
” April 9 : The Trump campaign releases a misleading ad attacking Biden ’ s record on China .
April 13 : Trump claims to have the legal right to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at a press conference that the president ’ s “ authority is total.
” April 14 : Trump announces plans to halt funding to the WHO , accusing the organization of “ severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus.
” April 17 : As small groups of — sometimes armed — protesters demonstrating against shelter-in-place orders begin to receive media coverage , Trump calls on his supporters , including those who attended these protests , to “ liberate ” Michigan , Minnesota , and Virginia , all of which have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attacks Biden and the Obama administration ’ s handling of the 2009 H1N1 pandemic .
April 22 : Trump , who has spent the last few days promoting reopening , announces that he opposes Georgia reopening .
April 23 : Trump signs an executive order blocking green cards for most categories of prospective immigrants ; at a daily press briefing , he also floats bleach as a potential coronavirus treatment : April 30 : The Trump administration allows federal “ Stay at Home ” guidelines to expire , ceding the field to state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shifting the blame , May was the month the president pivoted to denying there was anything to be blamed for .
Although the US death toll passed 100,000 on May 27 , Trump nonetheless insisted that the US response had “ met the moment.
” The US began to lead the world in Covid-19 cases and deaths .
And the president continued his efforts to reframe recent events to cast himself in a favorable light .
For instance , in May , Trump attributed his decision to limit travel from China as the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ numbering in the millions , though most of the coronavirus cases at the epicenter of the US outbreak — New York City — have been shown to originate from Europe .
And as states began to reopen nonessential businesses — despite experts warning premature reopening could lead to a second wave of infections — Trump also looked to put the crisis behind him .
The president made multiple trips to battleground states in May , and his campaign is reportedly examining plans to resume holding Trump ’ s signature rallies .
Here ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ May 3 : Trump again revises his estimate on the number of Covid-19 deaths the US will suffer and predicts 85,000 to 100,000 fatalities during a Fox News virtual town hall .
May 7 : The US hits 75,000 reported Covid-19 deaths ; the New York Times reports that the Trump administration elected to shelve detailed reopening guidelines from the CDC .
May 8 : Trump claims that the US is “ the world leader ” in responding to the coronavirus .
May 9 : Although many states have yet to meet the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ White House ’ s guidelines , Trump continues to push for the reopening of nonessential businesses , using the slogan “ TRANSITION TO GREATNESS !
” May 10 : Trump again goes after the Obama administration ’ s response to the 2009 swine flu pandemic , falsely calling it a “ disaster.
” As the Washington Post has explained , “ some flaws in the system were discovered ” in the Obama administration ’ s handling of the H1N1 pandemic , “ but overall the government was praised for its response.
” May @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has “ met the moment and we have prevailed ” in responding to the coronavirus .
May 18 : Trump tells reporters that he is taking hydroxychloroquine , an antimalarial drug that has been linked to an increased risk of death when used to treat coronavirus patients .
May 21 : Trump claims falsely that he was “ so early .
I was earlier than anybody thought ” in response to a Columbia University study suggesting that 36,000 lives could have been saved in the US alone by implementing social distancing measures just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the president reportedly ignored security briefings on the coronavirus for weeks and did not roll out a social distancing campaign until mid-March .
May 22 : Trump at a press conference announces he is labeling churches as “ essential ” and calls for governors to allow their reopening , as well as threatening — without authority — to “ override ” any governors who fail to do so .
May 23 : For the first time since March , Trump hits the links at his own golf course in Sterling , Virginia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ toward 100,000 .
May 24 : Trump bans non-US citizens traveling from Brazil from entering the country .
May 26 : Trump again favorably compares the death toll to an Imperial College projection that estimated the death toll had the US taken no steps to stop the spread of Covid-19 , tweeting that “ if I hadn ’ t done my job well , & early , we would have lost 1 1/2 to 2 Million People.
” May 27 : The US hits 100,000 reported Covid-19 deaths .
Every day at Vox @ @ @ @ @ @ @ important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives .
Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
Vox ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn .
Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff to continue to offer free @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the quality and volume that this moment requires .
Please consider making a contribution to Vox today .

A detailed timeline of all the ways Trump failed to respond to the coronavirus
Share All sharing options for: A detailed timeline of all the ways Trump failed to respond to the coronavirus
A week and a half ago, the US coronavirus death toll surpassed 100,000 — the most in the world, and more than the next three countries combined.
That number has only grown in the days since. And in the face of that crisis, President Donald Trump has a message for the American people: It was China’s fault, and the only reason the US death toll isn’t worse is because of his quick action in banning travel from China.
In fact, there are many reasons the US death toll is so high, including a national response plagued by delays at the federal level, wishful thinking by President Trump, the sidelining of experts, a pointed White House campaign to place the blame for the Trump administration’s shortcomings on others, and time wasted chasing down false hopes based on poor science.
Often as not, though, rather than argue the merits of its response at home, the Trump administration has chosen to focus on its action against China as a benchmark for success — and that’s not accidental. In fact, Trump’s quick pivot to blaming China is a deliberate strategy, supposedly backed up by internal Trump campaign polling and designed to obfuscate the details of the truly inadequate US response. But in the early days of the novel coronavirus pandemic, Trump himself took a very different line on everything from China to the severity of the virus itself and how bad things might get in the US.
Though White House Coronavirus Task Force member Dr. Anthony Fauci admitted as early as March that the virus could kill 100,000 to 200,000 Americans, Trump has had his own ever-shifting goalposts for what counts as a successful response. On April 20, he predicted 50,000 to 60,000 dead from Covid-19. A week later, he revised his estimate to 70,000. On May 4, it was 80,000 to 100,000 people, and we now know it will continue to climb past that mark.
Throughout the pandemic, however, much of the Trump administration’s spin — regarding Trump’s own response, China’s role, and more — has been misleading, if not outright untrue. Here’s what Trump and the federal government have — and have not — done to respond to the virus.
2019
In late 2019, the coronavirus wasn’t on much of the world’s radar. President Trump was becoming the third president in US history to be impeached. We now know, however, that the first cases of the virus were cropping up as early as November. Here’s where things stood late last year:
November 17: Although it was not diagnosed as such at the time, researchers have now identified the first confirmed Covid-19 case as having been seen on November 17 in China’s Hubei province.
December 27: A man in France, who is now the first known Covid-19 patient outside of China, goes to the emergency room with a fever and difficulty breathing. At the time, Covid-19 was still unheard of outside of China.
December 31: The Wuhan Municipal Health Commission reports the first cluster of cases of a “pneumonia of unknown cause,” later identified as Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, now called SARS-CoV-2.
January 2020
Though new discoveries — such as the December case in France mentioned above — keep pushing the timeline of the virus back, much of the world began to take note of a mysterious pneumonia-like illness in China in January 2020, which at the time was mostly centered in the Hubei province. On January 5, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a preliminary news item about the then-unidentified disease; at the time, it was a relatively distant concern in the US, particularly given the country had yet to see any confirmed cases.
But the coronavirus’s threat was of concern to US national security officials, who, as the Washington Post reported in March, were warning Trump of the global danger posed by the virus in daily intelligence briefings as early as January.
Nonetheless, in public comments and tweets, the president consistently played down the fledgling pandemic even as the first US case was reported in Washington state. He also applauded China’s handling of the virus at several points in January, before taking action to protect the US in the form of a limited travel ban from China on January 31.
Here’s what things looked like in January.
January 11: The first death from a confirmed case of Covid-19 is reported in China.
January 16: A researcher in Germany develops the first coronavirus test.
January 19: Human-to-human transmission of the coronavirus is confirmed by the Chinese government.
January 21: The first confirmed Covid-19 case in the US is reported in Washington state.
January 22: While at Davos, Trump makes his first public comment on the coronavirus, downplaying the risk in comments to CNBC and CBS News correspondent Paula Reid.
To CNBC: We have it totally under control. It’s one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. It’s — going to be just fine. To CBS: We do have a plan and we think it’s going to be handled very well. We’ve already handled it very well … We’re in very good shape and I think China’s in very good shape also.
January 24: Trump praises China’s “efforts and transparency” and thanks Chinese President Xi Jinping for his response to the virus.
China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency. It will all work out well. In particular, on behalf of the American People, I want to thank President Xi! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2020
January 29: Trump receives a briefing on the coronavirus, and asserts that the US is “on top of it 24/7.”
Just received a briefing on the Coronavirus in China from all of our GREAT agencies, who are also working closely with China. We will continue to monitor the ongoing developments. We have the best experts anywhere in the world, and they are on top of it 24/7! pic.twitter.com/rrtF1Stk78 — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 30, 2020
January 30: The WHO declares the coronavirus a global health emergency.
January 30: Trump suggests that the coronavirus is under control in remarks at a manufacturing plant in Michigan:
We have very little problem in this country at this moment — five [cases]. And those people are all recuperating successfully. But we’re working very closely with China and other countries, and we think it’s going to have a very good ending for us.
TRUMP: "We're working very strongly w/ China on the coronavirus that's a new thing that a lot of people are talking about... we have very little problem in this country at this moment. 5, and those ppl are all recuperating... we think it's going to have a very good ending for us" pic.twitter.com/dEHD074042 — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 30, 2020
January 31: Trump suspends entry to the US for many — but not all — categories of people traveling from China, a move which some epidemiologists warned at the time was “more of an emotional or political reaction” than a public health decision. The Department of Health and Human Services declares the coronavirus a public health emergency.
February 2020
February started with a State of the Union address on February 4, and the first US Covid-19 death followed on February 6 in California’s Bay Area. The majority of the coronavirus messaging coming from the White House, however, continued to focus on downplaying the virus rather than bracing for the now-realized possibility that it could become a full-blown pandemic and a global public health crisis.
The Trump administration did take a few steps toward crafting a federal response, requesting emergency funding from Congress and setting up a task force with Vice President Mike Pence at its head. Meanwhile, Trump — and Fox News — leaned hard into portraying the coronavirus as under control, and even as a Democratic hoax.
As a result, February was by and large a lost month: Delays in developing a test kit were followed by testing shortages, and both issues meant the coronavirus was able to spread undetected and unabated in many parts of the country.
Here’s what things looked like in February.
February 4: Trump gives the annual State of the Union address and briefly mentions the US response to the coronavirus in his speech.
We are coordinating with the Chinese government and working closely together on the coronavirus outbreak in China. My administration will take all necessary steps to safeguard our citizens from this threat.
February 5: The Food and Drug Administration issues an emergency use authorization for a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) coronavirus test, clearing the way for it to be used in state labs.
February 6: The first death in the US from a confirmed case of Covid-19 is retroactively confirmed to have occurred in early February by the Santa Clara County medical examiner following an autopsy of the victim.
February 7: Trump again praises Xi’s response to the coronavirus.
....he will be successful, especially as the weather starts to warm & the virus hopefully becomes weaker, and then gone. Great discipline is taking place in China, as President Xi strongly leads what will be a very successful operation. We are working closely with China to help! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 7, 2020
February 15: The first death in Europe from a confirmed case of Covid-19 is reported in France.
February 23: Trump again claims that the coronavirus is “under control” in an impromptu South Lawn press conference with Marine One waiting to depart to Andrews Air Force Base ahead of a trip to India.
We’re very much involved. We’re very — very cognizant of everything going on. We have it very much under control in this country.
February 24: In a tweet, Trump reiterates his claim that the virus is “very much under control in the USA.”
The Coronavirus is very much under control in the USA. We are in contact with everyone and all relevant countries. CDC & World Health have been working hard and very smart. Stock Market starting to look very good to me! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 24, 2020
February 25: Trump requests $2.5 billion in coronavirus response funding from Congress for vaccine development, testing, PPE, and more.
February 26: The first instance of community spread in the US is confirmed by the CDC.
February 26: Trump appoints Pence to lead the coronavirus task force; during the same press conference, he again downplays the virus.
And again, when you have 15 people, and the 15 within a couple of days is going to be down to close to zero, that’s a pretty good job we’ve done.
“We’re going to be pretty soon at only 5 people, and we could be at just 1 or 2 people over the next short period of time” — Trump on US coronavirus cases on February 26 (there are now more than 10,000 cases in the country) pic.twitter.com/0O6IouQhJJ — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 19, 2020
February 27: Trump predicts that the coronavirus will disappear “like a miracle.”
It’s going to disappear. One day it’s like a miracle, it will disappear.
February 28: Trump refers to the coronavirus as the Democrats’ “new hoax” at a rally in South Carolina.
The Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus… One of my people came up to me and said “Mr. President, they tried to beat you on Russia, Russia, Russia, that didn’t work out too well. They couldn’t do it. They tried the impeachment hoax that was on a perfect conversation. They tried anything, they tried it over and over, they’ve been doing it since you got in… And this is their new hoax.”
March 2020
In March, the coronavirus for the first time began to intrude on daily life in a major way. The NBA shut down on March 11, the same night Trump addressed the nation in primetime from the Oval Office, announcing a European travel ban and promising economic relief efforts.
Not long after that speech, California became the first state to implement a general stay-at-home order on March 19.
By the end of the month, more than 30 states had done the same, and those shutdowns — a public health necessity, in the opinion of most experts — brought the US economy to a screeching halt. As a result, it’s maybe not surprising that Trump, who has previously tied his reelection pitch directly to the economy, spent much of the month broadcasting an unwarranted optimism about the trajectory of the virus and promoting potential treatments like hydroxychloroquine — which the FDA has since warned against using for Covid-19 treatment or prevention, noting it can cause heart problems.
The growing severity of the pandemic, however, also led to a mid-March social distancing push from the White House. Shortly after his primetime address, Trump announced a new slate of guidelines advising against discretionary travel and against congregating in groups of more than 10 people.
And toward the end of the month, the growing death toll from the coronavirus — centered on New York, Trump’s longtime home — appeared to have an impact on the president. In a press conference, he acknowledged that the first half of April was “going to be a rough two-week period” and walked back previous statements downplaying the coronavirus by comparing it to the seasonal flu.
Here’s what things looked like in March.
March 5: Trump suggests that closing the US to travel from China helped to keep the number of Covid-19 cases low.
With approximately 100,000 CoronaVirus cases worldwide, and 3,280 deaths, the United States, because of quick action on closing our borders, has, as of now, only 129 cases (40 Americans brought in) and 11 deaths. We are working very hard to keep these numbers as low as possible! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 5, 2020
March 6: At the CDC headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, Trump says falsely that “anybody that wants a test can get a test”; he also comments that he would rather have infected people who were trapped on a cruise ship stay there to keep the number of confirmed US cases low.
Anybody that wants a test can get a test ... they’re making millions of more as we speak. But as of right now and yesterday, anybody that needs a test — that’s the important thing — and the tests are all perfect, like the letter was perfect. The transcription was perfect, right? This was not as perfect as that, but pretty good. ... I like the numbers being where they are. I don’t need to have the numbers double because of one ship that wasn’t our fault.
"I like the numbers being where they are. I don't need to have the numbers double because of one ship" -- Trump explains that he doesn't want to let people off the Grand Princess cruise ship because he doesn't want the number of coronavirus cases in the country to go up pic.twitter.com/ELhZDjiZW9 — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 6, 2020
March 9: Trump compares the coronavirus to the common flu, a comparison which at that time had already been debunked by experts including Dr. Anthony Fauci.
So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 9, 2020
March 11: The WHO officially labels the coronavirus a pandemic.
March 11: Trump makes an error-ridden primetime address from the Oval Office that coincides with Tom Hanks announcing his coronavirus diagnosis and the NBA suspending its season.
Testing and testing capabilities are expanding rapidly, day by day, we’re moving very quickly ... The vast majority of Americans, the risk is very, very low.
March 13: Trump declares a national emergency in response to the coronavirus, freeing up billions in federal funding for the virus response.
March 16: Trump announces “15 Days to Stop the Spread” CDC guidelines, encouraging social distancing.
March 18: Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mutually close the US-Canada border; Trump officially invokes the Defense Production Act (DPA) in order to push domestic manufacturing industries to produce badly needed medical supplies.
March 19: Trump incorrectly claims that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine for treating Covid-19.
The nice part is, it’s been around for a long time, so we know that if things don’t go as planned it’s not going to kill anybody. When you go with a brand new drug, you don’t know that that’s going to happen. It’s shown very very encouraging early results.
March 19: Trump labels the coronavirus the “Chinese Virus” in a press conference; photos show that he revised prepared remarks to add the xenophobic term.
Close up of President @realDonaldTrump notes is seen where he crossed out "Corona" and replaced it with "Chinese" Virus as he speaks with his coronavirus task force today at the White House. #trump #trumpnotes pic.twitter.com/kVw9yrPPeJ — Jabin Botsford (@jabinbotsford) March 19, 2020
March 20: Trump closes the US-Mexico border, saying:
[Unauthorized entries] threaten to create a perfect storm that would spread the infection to our border agents, migrants, and to the public at large. Left unchecked, this would cripple our immigration system, overwhelm our healthcare system, and severely damage our national security. We’re not going to let that happen.
March 20: Trump touts hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug unproven as a Covid-19 treatment, at the White House Coronavirus Task Force daily briefing; in the same exchange, he attacks NBC News correspondent Peter Alexander as a “terrible reporter.”
Let’s see if it works. It might and it might not. I happen to feel good about it, but who knows, I’ve been right a lot. Let’s see what happens.
PETER ALEXANDER: What do you say to Americans watching right now who are scared?
TRUMP: I say that you are a terrible reporter. That is what I say. I think you had a nasty question. pic.twitter.com/yw1T2HTnT3 — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 20, 2020
March 22: As the economic impact of coronavirus lockdowns becomes more apparent, Trump shies away from a prolonged shutdown following a historically bad day for the Dow Jones stock index the previous week.
WE CANNOT LET THE CURE BE WORSE THAN THE PROBLEM ITSELF. AT THE END OF THE 15 DAY PERIOD, WE WILL MAKE A DECISION AS TO WHICH WAY WE WANT TO GO! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 23, 2020
March 24: Trump floats Easter Sunday, April 12, as a potential reopening date.
I would love to have it open by Easter. I will — I will tell you that right now. I would love to have that — it’s such an important day for other reasons, but I’ll make it an important day for this too. I would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter.
Trump on ending social distancing: "I would love to have it opened by Easter." (That's April 12)
"That would be a great American resurrection," host Bill Hemmer replies. pic.twitter.com/G1AhP1biNI — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 24, 2020
March 26: The US hits 1,000 reported Covid-19 deaths.
March 27: Trump attacks General Motors CEO Mary Barra on Twitter over ventilator manufacturing amid a desperate shortage of the machines, and threatens to “invoke ‘P’” — the Defense Production Act — to compel the company to make more, the first of many such threats made against companies producing essential materials.
As usual with “this” General Motors, things just never seem to work out. They said they were going to give us 40,000 much needed Ventilators, “very quickly”. Now they are saying it will only be 6000, in late April, and they want top dollar. Always a mess with Mary B. Invoke “P”. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 27, 2020
March 27: Trump signs a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package that includes direct cash payments to Americans, additional funding for hospitals, and some $500 billion in loans for companies.
March 29: Trump extends CDC social distancing guidance through April 30; in the Rose Garden, he also says he believes his administration will have “done a very good job” if the US avoids the worst-case 2.2 million deaths predicted by London’s Imperial College.
“If we have between 100,000 and 200,000 we’ve all together done a very good job,” Trump says, about up to 200,000 Americans dying of #COVID19.pic.twitter.com/ricnlAbKKK — Jason Sparks (@sparksjls) March 30, 2020
March 31: Trump drops his comparison to the flu, saying the coronavirus is “vicious”:
It’s not the flu. It’s vicious. When you send a friend to the hospital, and you call up to find out how is he doing — it happened to me, where he goes to the hospital, he says goodbye. He’s sort of a tough guy. A little older, a little heavier than he’d like to be, frankly. And you call up the next day: “How’s he doing?” And he’s in a coma? This is not the flu.
April 2020
For all that Trump spent January and February praising China’s response to the coronavirus, April saw his White House execute an about-face as the human and economic toll of the pandemic in the US mounted. The president began to blame China, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, and the WHO for problems with America’s Covid-19 response. And Democratic governors, like Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, who maintained lockdown orders and criticized the Trump administration’s response to the crisis, became targets of his ire.
Here’s what things looked like in April.
April 2: Trump employs the DPA to direct 3M and other companies to manufacture masks and ventilators:
Moments ago, I directed Secretary Azar and Acting Secretary Wolf to use any and all available authority under the Defense Production Act to ensure that domestic manufacturers have the supplies they need to produce ventilators for patients with severe cases of C-O-V-I-D 19. You know what that is, right? Become a very famous term: C-O-V-I-D — COVID.
April 4: Trump again invokes the DPA to combat the hoarding of medical supplies by “wartime profiteers.”
April 6: The US hits 10,000 reported Covid-19 deaths.
April 9: The Trump campaign releases a misleading ad attacking Biden’s record on China.
April 13: Trump claims to have the legal right to overrule governors’ shelter-in-place orders, asserting at a press conference that the president’s “authority is total.”
TRUMP: "When somebody is the president of the United States, the authority is total. And that's the way it's gotta be. It's total." pic.twitter.com/zIuiBn1Mhw — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 13, 2020
April 14: Trump announces plans to halt funding to the WHO, accusing the organization of “severely mismanaging and covering up the spread of the coronavirus.”
April 15: The US hits 25,000 reported Covid-19 deaths.
April 16: The Trump administration releases its reopening guidelines:
Every state is very different. They’re all beautiful. We love them all. But they’re very, very different. If they need to remain closed, we will allow them to do that. And if they believe it is time to reopen, we will provide them the freedom and guidance to accomplish that task — and very, very quickly — depending on what they want to do.
April 17: As small groups of — sometimes armed — protesters demonstrating against shelter-in-place orders begin to receive media coverage, Trump calls on his supporters, including those who attended these protests, to “liberate” Michigan, Minnesota, and Virginia, all of which have Democratic governors.
LIBERATE MICHIGAN! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020
April 17: Trump attacks Biden and the Obama administration’s handling of the 2009 H1N1 pandemic.
Biden/Obama were a disaster in handling the H1N1 Swine Flu. Polling at the time showed disastrous approval numbers. 17,000 people died unnecessarily and through incompetence! Also, don’t forget their 5 Billion Dollar Obamacare website that should have cost close to nothing! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2020
April 22: Trump, who has spent the last few days promoting reopening, announces that he opposes Georgia reopening.
I told the governor of Georgia, Brian Kemp, that I disagree strongly with his decision to open certain facilities which are in violation of the phase one guidelines for the incredible people of Georgia ... I think it’s too soon.
April 23: Trump signs an executive order blocking green cards for most categories of prospective immigrants; at a daily press briefing, he also floats bleach as a potential coronavirus treatment:
And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute. One minute. And is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning. Because you see it gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs.
April 24: The US hits 50,000 reported Covid-19 deaths.
April 28: The US hits 1 million confirmed Covid-19 cases.
April 30: The Trump administration allows federal “Stay at Home” guidelines to expire, ceding the field to state efforts.
May 2020
If April was focused on shifting the blame, May was the month the president pivoted to denying there was anything to be blamed for. Although the US death toll passed 100,000 on May 27, Trump nonetheless insisted that the US response had “met the moment.” The US began to lead the world in Covid-19 cases and deaths.
And the president continued his efforts to reframe recent events to cast himself in a favorable light. For instance, in May, Trump attributed his decision to limit travel from China as the major factor in avoiding a death toll numbering in the millions, though most of the coronavirus cases at the epicenter of the US outbreak — New York City — have been shown to originate from Europe.
And as states began to reopen nonessential businesses — despite experts warning premature reopening could lead to a second wave of infections — Trump also looked to put the crisis behind him. The president made multiple trips to battleground states in May, and his campaign is reportedly examining plans to resume holding Trump’s signature rallies.
Here’s how things looked in May.
May 3: Trump again revises his estimate on the number of Covid-19 deaths the US will suffer and predicts 85,000 to 100,000 fatalities during a Fox News virtual town hall.
Look, we’re going to lose anywhere from 75, 80 to 100 thousand people. That’s a horrible thing. We shouldn’t lose one person over this. This should have been stopped in China. It should have been stopped. But if we didn’t do it, the minimum we would have lost is a million-two, a million-four, a million-five. That’s the minimum. We would have lost probably higher than — it’s possible higher than 2.2.
May 7: The US hits 75,000 reported Covid-19 deaths; the New York Times reports that the Trump administration elected to shelve detailed reopening guidelines from the CDC.
May 8: Trump claims that the US is “the world leader” in responding to the coronavirus.
"All of them, not everyone would want to admit it, but they all view us as the world leader, and they're following us" -- Trump claims that the US coronavirus response is the toast of world leaders (the US has well over 2 times more deaths than the second hardest-hit country) pic.twitter.com/3bW3Olt8Qj — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 8, 2020
May 9: Although many states have yet to meet the minimum requirements for reopening based on the White House’s guidelines, Trump continues to push for the reopening of nonessential businesses, using the slogan “TRANSITION TO GREATNESS!”
TRANSITION TO GREATNESS! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 9, 2020
May 10: Trump again goes after the Obama administration’s response to the 2009 swine flu pandemic, falsely calling it a “disaster.” As the Washington Post has explained, “some flaws in the system were discovered” in the Obama administration’s handling of the H1N1 pandemic, “but overall the government was praised for its response.”
We are getting great marks for the handling of the CoronaVirus pandemic, especially the very early BAN of people from China, the infectious source, entering the USA. Compare that to the Obama/Sleepy Joe disaster known as H1N1 Swine Flu. Poor marks, bad polls - didn’t have a clue! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 10, 2020
May 11: Trump says that the US has “met the moment and we have prevailed” in responding to the coronavirus.
"We have met the moment and we have prevailed," Trump says at the White House, as COVID-19 deaths go over 80,000.
Previously his son-in-law Jared Kushner said the administration's response was a "great success story." At that point deaths were at 58,000. pic.twitter.com/G52OwL3Nf2 — The American Independent (@AmerIndependent) May 11, 2020
May 18: Trump tells reporters that he is taking hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug that has been linked to an increased risk of death when used to treat coronavirus patients.
May 21: Trump claims falsely that he was “so early. I was earlier than anybody thought” in response to a Columbia University study suggesting that 36,000 lives could have been saved in the US alone by implementing social distancing measures just a week earlier. As noted above, the president reportedly ignored security briefings on the coronavirus for weeks and did not roll out a social distancing campaign until mid-March.
REPORTER: A new Columbia study says 36,000 lives would've been saved if social distancing measures would've been recommended just one week earlier. Do you believe that?
TRUMP: "I was so early. I was earlier than anybody thought... Columbia is an institution that is very liberal" pic.twitter.com/avLKBZLNGc — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 21, 2020
May 22: Trump at a press conference announces he is labeling churches as “essential” and calls for governors to allow their reopening, as well as threatening — without authority — to “override” any governors who fail to do so.
May 23: For the first time since March, Trump hits the links at his own golf course in Sterling, Virginia, as the US death toll edges toward 100,000.
May 24: Trump bans non-US citizens traveling from Brazil from entering the country.
May 26: Trump again favorably compares the death toll to an Imperial College projection that estimated the death toll had the US taken no steps to stop the spread of Covid-19, tweeting that “if I hadn’t done my job well, & early, we would have lost 1 1/2 to 2 Million People.”
For all of the political hacks out there, if I hadn’t done my job well, & early, we would have lost 1 1/2 to 2 Million People, as opposed to the 100,000 plus that looks like will be the number. That’s 15 to 20 times more than we will lose. I shut down entry from China very early! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2020
May 27: The US hits 100,000 reported Covid-19 deaths.


vox--2020-06-08--The “boogaloo” “movement,” explained

The “boogaloo” “movement,” explained

The nationwide protests over police brutality and the murder of George Floyd has attracted attention from some members of an extremist online subculture : the so-called “ boogaloo ” movement .
Believers in boogaloo ideology — a focus on visible gun ownership with some advocating for a violent civil war against the federal government — have shown up to protests in Minneapolis , Las Vegas , and other cities , sometimes wearing Hawaiian shirts ( based on a movement in-joke ) and carrying large guns .
In Las Vegas on Wednesday , federal prosecutors announced charges against three “ alleged @ @ @ @ @ @ @ military ties , accusing them of taking part in a conspiracy to spark violence at protests held over the weekend and charging them with possessing a Molotov cocktail .
And in Columbia , South Carolina , an EMS worker believed to have an affiliation to the boogaloo movement was arrested and fired from his job for his role in riots that took place in that city .
Boogaloo — the name derives from the movie Breakin ’ 2 : Electric Boogaloo — is a loosely connected anti-government movement that has included some white @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” ideology that encourages spurring civil disorder to eventually foment the breakdown of the political system entirely .
But the movement also includes people far outside of white nationalist circles .
As CNN reporters Robert Kuznia , Drew Griffin , and Curt Devine put it on June 4 , “ The boogaloos are an emerging incarnation of extremism that seems to defy easy categorization.
” Their appearances at protests have drawn new attention — though as far as we know now , members of those groups have been a small percentage of those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 27 memo , the Department of Homeland Security raised concerns that domestic terror groups could target the protests , including allegations from the FBI that “ a white supremacist extremist Telegram channel incited followers to engage in violence and start the ‘ boogaloo ’ by shooting in a crowd.
” The loosely affiliated boogaloo movement and its ties to white nationalist or white supremacist groups are extremely complicated .
Not all boogalooers are white supremacists , and some in white nationalist and white supremacist circles don ’ t agree with the group ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ enforcement for the purpose of fomenting a war .
And while frequently using racist images and tropes online , many members of the boogaloo movement have no specific ties to white nationalism or the wider white power movement .
( White nationalism is a specific ideology urging the creation of a white ethnostate , not just a different term for “ racist.
” ) The extremely online nature of the boogaloo — the intense volume of memeing and thick sheen of irony — makes it difficult to parse out what people in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ would be taking part in protests against police brutality .
And for some boogalooers , members of a movement of sorts based on in-jokes layered upon in-jokes , that confusion is part of the point .
The term boogaloo stems from the 1980s film Breakin ’ 2 : Electric Boogaloo and is meant to imply a lesser “ sequel ” to something that has already happened .
For many followers , that something would be the Civil War .
The boogaloo movement originated largely on 4chan ’ s /k/ forum , where users @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shows that the term “ boogaloo ” has been used on the forum since 2012 , in reference to Obama ’ s reelection causing a second Civil War ( as in Civil War 2 : Electric Boogaloo ) .
As radicalization researcher and podcast host Robert Evans told me , “ It ’ s essentially a joke that people wrapped a bunch of different stuff in.
” That vaguely ironic jokiness has remained among people who identify as “ Boogaloo Bois.
” For example , some people who follow the movement use the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ big luau ” to avoid saying “ boogaloo ” on social media platforms — which resulted in a new symbolism for Hawaiian shirts .
As Evans explained at the investigatory website Bellingcat : In addition , Evans argued that while some members of the movement , such as it exists , are racist and espouse white nationalist viewpoints , others are not .
This matches what counterterrorism researchers have seen within the movement as it reacts to current events .
For example , Chevy McGee , a Colorado man alleged to belong to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last week with guns and tactical gear voiced support for Black Lives Matter ( through the lens of anti-police sentiment ) on social media .
But he had also planned to attend an anti-coronavirus shutdown “ Reopen Colorado ” protest in early May ( but was prevented due to the arrest of an associate ) .
And in Nevada , two men alleged by the government to be part of the boogaloo movement first planned to spark violence at a “ Reopen Nevada ” protest by setting off smoke bombs to start a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , authorities allege , they and a third man allied by a desire to “ violently overthrow the United States government ” then planned to blow up a power converter to “ to hopefully create civil unrest and rioting throughout Las Vegas ” following the death of George Floyd .
According to the charging document , the men aimed to model their actions after those of the Irish Republican Army ( IRA ) .
Their main political ideology , and the guiding sentiment of the movement more widely , appears to be anti-government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ confiscation as a major concern .
But it ’ s even unclear as to whether or not boogaloo followers constitute a distinct political bloc .
I spoke with Evans on Tuesday , and he told me , “ I ’ m not really entirely happy calling it a movement , but I don ’ t know what else to call it.
” White nationalists and avowed racists have also taken up the boogaloo mantle ( and it ’ s worth noting that the publicly stated interests of members of the movement may differ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
For example , failed House candidate and rabid racist and anti-Semite Paul Nehlen embraced the movement after a shooting at a California synagogue in 2019 .
The /k/ board , where the movement got its start , is steeped in racist memes and has been for much of its history .
And not to mention that at the heart of the boogaloo concept is a desire to recontest the Civil War .
As with the alt-right , the memeing and jokes that make up a large part of the movement can , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a desire for violence .
Evans told me that for some people who follow the boogaloo movement , there ’ s an element of the “ sunk costs ” fallacy at play , as people who began discussing “ boogaloo ” originally as a joke start taking the idea of a civil war against the government more seriously .
“ Most of them [ were ] joking at first , but they started buying body armor and weaponry and training and stockpiling .
And I think over time , the investment that they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ committed to making it happen.
” For many , the first time they ’ ve heard of the boogaloo movement has been when referenced by politicians alleging that outside influences — like boogalooers , white nationalists , or antifa — are behind the violence that ’ s beset some American cities in the wake of anti-police brutality protests .
But members of the boogaloo movement are unlikely to be the majority of those arrested at either the protests or the violence .
In Minneapolis , Seattle , Cleveland , Dallas , Atlanta , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arrested during the protests and violence haven ’ t been outside agitators traveling the country to start fights and cause violence .
Rather , they ’ ve been people largely from the same places where they are arrested .
As the Washington Post detailed regarding anti-police brutality protests and rioting in Minneapolis : And the Southern Poverty Law Center ’ s Howard Graves told the New York Times , “ I have not seen any clear evidence that white supremacists or militiamen are masking up and going out to burn and loot.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the “ outside agitators ” trope has a lengthy history : It ’ s not to say that white nationalists or anti-government activists or virtually any group of any political stripe aren ’ t playing a part in the protests and violence taking place now .
Evidence and legal documents say they are .
But while boogalooers may be going from state to state to participate in anti-police brutality protests ( or earlier this spring , anti-stay-at-home protests ) , the evidence indicates that they are far from the majority of those protesting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aim to answer your most important questions and provide you , and our audience around the world , with information that has the power to save lives .
Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
Vox ’ s work is reaching more people than ever , but our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources — particularly during a pandemic and an economic downturn .
Your financial contribution will not constitute a donation , but it will enable our staff @ @ @ @ @ @ @ videos , and podcasts at the quality and volume that this moment requires .
Please consider making a contribution to Vox today .

The nationwide protests over police brutality and the killing of George Floyd have attracted attention from some members of an extremist online subculture: the so-called “boogaloo” movement.
Believers in boogaloo ideology — a focus on visible gun ownership, with some advocating for a violent civil war against the federal government — have shown up to protests in Minneapolis, Las Vegas, and other cities, sometimes wearing Hawaiian shirts (based on a movement in-joke) and carrying large guns.
In Las Vegas on Wednesday, federal prosecutors announced charges against three “alleged members of the Boogaloo movement” with military ties, accusing them of taking part in a conspiracy to spark violence at protests held over the weekend and charging them with possessing a Molotov cocktail. And in Columbia, South Carolina, an EMS worker believed to have an affiliation to the boogaloo movement was arrested and fired from his job for his role in riots that took place in that city.
Boogaloo — the name derives from the movie Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo — is a loosely connected anti-government movement that has included some white nationalists who believe in an “accelerationist” ideology that encourages spurring civil disorder to eventually foment the breakdown of the political system entirely. But the movement also includes people far outside of white nationalist circles. As CNN reporters Robert Kuznia, Drew Griffin, and Curt Devine put it on June 4, “The boogaloos are an emerging incarnation of extremism that seems to defy easy categorization.”
Their appearances at protests have drawn new attention — though as far as we know now, members of those groups have been a small percentage of those involved in violence. In a May 27 memo, the Department of Homeland Security raised concerns that domestic terror groups could target the protests, including allegations from the FBI that “a white supremacist extremist Telegram channel incited followers to engage in violence and start the ‘boogaloo’ by shooting in a crowd.”
The loosely affiliated boogaloo movement and its ties to white nationalist or white supremacist groups are extremely complicated. Not all boogalooers are white supremacists, and some in white nationalist and white supremacist circles don’t agree with the group’s philosophy of provoking conflicts with law enforcement for the purpose of fomenting a war.
And while frequently using racist images and tropes online, many members of the boogaloo movement have no specific ties to white nationalism or the wider white power movement. (White nationalism is a specific ideology urging the creation of a white ethnostate, not just a different term for racist.)
The extremely online nature of the boogaloo — the intense volume of memeing and thick sheen of irony — makes it difficult to parse what people in the movement want to do or why some would be taking part in protests against police brutality.
And for some boogalooers, members of a movement of sorts based on in-jokes layered upon in-jokes, that confusion is part of the point.
The boogaloo, explained
The term boogaloo stems from the 1980s film Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo and is meant to imply a lesser “sequel” to something that has already happened. For many followers, that something would be the Civil War.
The boogaloo movement originated largely on 4chan’s /k/ forum, where users discuss weapons and guns. And research shows that the term “boogaloo” has been used on the forum since 2012, in reference to Obama’s reelection causing a second Civil War (as in Civil War 2: Electric Boogaloo). As radicalization researcher and podcast host Robert Evans told me, “It’s essentially a joke that people wrapped a bunch of different stuff in.”
That vaguely ironic jokiness has remained among people who identify as “Boogaloo Bois.” For example, some people who follow the movement use the terms “big igloo” or “big luau” to avoid saying “boogaloo” on social media platforms — which resulted in a new symbolism for Hawaiian shirts. As Evans explained at the investigatory website Bellingcat:
By this point, Hawaiian shirts (a sartorial necessity at any big luau) had already become a way for individuals to signify their anticipation of the coming civil war. Activists at the Richmond gun rights rally on January 20, 2020, were spotted wearing Hawaiian shirts and full combat gear. Since then, Hawaiian shirts paired with guns have been a common sight at anti-lockdown protests, with members of existing radical right or “patriot movement” organizations using the garments to signal their affiliation with the Boogaloo movement.
In addition, Evans argued that while some members of the movement, such as it exists, are racist and espouse white nationalist viewpoints, others are not.
Open source materials suggest that, for now, the apocalyptic, anti-government politics of the “Boogaloo Bois” are not monolithically racist/neo-Nazi. As we have observed, some members rail against police shootings of African Americans, and praise black nationalist self defense groups.
This matches what counterterrorism researchers have seen within the movement as it reacts to current events.
On Facebook, Boogaloo supporters debated the best way to express sympathy for the protestors. Some worried that [Black Lives Matter] protestors would distrust the Boogaloo Bois, while others insisted that fighting police would demonstrate to BLM activists that they and the Boogaloo Bois were on the same side.
For example, Chevy McGee, a Colorado man alleged to belong to the boogaloo movement arrested at a protest last week with guns and tactical gear voiced support for Black Lives Matter (through the lens of anti-police sentiment) on social media. But he had also planned to attend an anti-coronavirus shutdown “Reopen Colorado” protest in early May (but was prevented due to the arrest of an associate).
And in Nevada, two men alleged by the government to be part of the boogaloo movement first planned to spark violence at a “Reopen Nevada” protest by setting off smoke bombs to start a panic. When that plan fell through, authorities allege, they and a third man allied by a desire to “violently overthrow the United States government” then planned to blow up a power converter “to hopefully create civil unrest and rioting throughout Las Vegas” following the death of George Floyd. According to the charging document, the men aimed to model their actions after those of the Irish Republican Army (IRA).
Their main political ideology, and the guiding sentiment of the movement more widely, appears to be anti-government sentiment with a general focus on gun confiscation as a major concern.
JUST CONFIRMED: Denver Police seized these guns and tactical gear from two men who showed up to the protest on Friday. One of them, Chevy McGee, tells me he didn't break any laws. McGee is part of the "Boogaloo" movement. #9NEWS pic.twitter.com/A5K8psce4j — Jeremy Jojola (@jeremyjojola) June 1, 2020
But it’s even unclear as to whether boogaloo followers constitute a distinct political bloc. I spoke with Evans on Tuesday, and he told me, “I’m not really entirely happy calling it a movement, but I don’t know what else to call it.”
A mess of a movement
White nationalists and avowed racists have also taken up the boogaloo mantle (and it’s worth noting that the publicly stated interests of members of the movement may differ from those they may genuinely support). For example, failed House candidate and rabid racist and anti-Semite Paul Nehlen embraced the movement after a shooting at a California synagogue in 2019. The /k/ board, where the movement got its start, is steeped in racist memes and has been for much of its history. And not to mention that at the heart of the boogaloo concept is a desire to recontest the Civil War.
As with the alt-right, the memeing and jokes that make up a large part of the movement can, for some, give effective cover to a desire for violence. Evans told me that for some people who follow the boogaloo movement, there’s an element of the “sunk costs” fallacy at play, as people who began discussing “boogaloo” originally as a joke start taking the idea of a civil war against the government more seriously.
“Most of them [were] joking at first, but they started buying body armor and weaponry and training and stockpiling. And I think over time, the investment that they put into this idea made them more committed to making it happen,” he said.
Outside agitators?
For many, the first time they’ve heard of the boogaloo movement has been when referenced by politicians alleging that outside influences — like boogalooers, white nationalists, or antifa — are behind the violence that’s beset some American cities in the wake of anti-police brutality protests.
But members of the boogaloo movement are unlikely to be the majority of those arrested at either the protests or the violence. In Minneapolis, Seattle, Cleveland, Dallas, Atlanta, and elsewhere, the majority of those arrested during the protests and violence haven’t been outside agitators traveling the country to start fights and cause violence. Rather, they’ve been people largely from the same places where they are arrested.
As the Washington Post detailed regarding anti-police brutality protests and rioting in Minneapolis:
Of the 57 people arrested through Saturday morning, 47 (82 percent) provided a Minnesota address to authorities, said Jeremy Zoss, a spokesman for the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office. Most of them gave addresses from Minneapolis and St. Paul, according to data provided to The Washington Post. The 10 other people arrested were from another state or the state wasn’t provided, Zoss said.
Sacramento leaders blamed recent havoc on outsiders. Nearly all arrests were locals https://t.co/X3qI4wneEp — The Sacramento Bee (@sacbee_news) June 3, 2020
And the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Howard Graves told the New York Times, “I have not seen any clear evidence that white supremacists or militiamen are masking up and going out to burn and loot.”
As my colleague Li Zhou detailed, the “outside agitators” trope has a lengthy history:
It’s a statement that activists have heard before, used throughout history to undermine the legitimacy of protests. By framing protests as the result of “outside” influence, lawmakers are able to undercut the validity of the protest itself and question activists’ capacity for organizing such a large-scale movement. At the same time, they’re able to maintain that they actually support activists’ broader cause of combatting police violence, while cracking down on protesters.
It’s not to say that white nationalists or anti-government activists or virtually any group of any political stripe aren’t playing a part in the protests and violence taking place now. Evidence and legal documents say they are. But while boogalooers may be going from state to state to participate in anti-police brutality protests (or earlier this spring, anti-stay-at-home protests), the evidence indicates that they are far from the majority of those protesting.