Thread on what we found: The White House got its first formal notification about coronavirus on Jan 3. Within days, US spy agencies were signaling the seriousness of the threat by including the first of many warnings in the President’s Daily Brief
Yasmeen Abutaleb
5,249 posts
Yasmeen Abutaleb
@yabutaleb7
Health reporter @reuters. Co-author of "Nightmare Scenario.” Formerly @washingtonpost.
Signal: yabutaleb.13
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- Stanford faculty passed a resolution tonight condemning Trump's pandemic adviser Scott Atlas. "Atlas’s disdain for established medical knowledge violates medical ethics," they write. "His pronouncements are damaging Stanford’s reputation and academic standing."
- A list obtained by WaPo shows Trump interacted w/ 207 ppl at Bedminster the day he tested positive. He didn't wear a mask on plane/helicopter after Hicks' infection. Aides say Trump, others infected were around thousands. And now, little contact tracing.
- NEW: We obtained nearly 900 pages of Fauci's emails from March and April 2020, opening a window into Fauci's world during the chaotic early days of the crisis. "All is well despite some crazy people in this world," he wrote in one note. w/ @damianpaletta
- Trump hasn't attended a task force meeting in months. Career officials are taking notes on shortcomings in the pandemic response, hoping the incoming Biden admin can address them. Inside the (lack of) response, w/ @AshleyRParker @jdawsey1 @PhilipRucker
- NEW: Scott Atlas has shot down attempts to expand testing, feuded with other docs, argued masks don't help and advocated herd immunity. And he's consolidated power over the response as cases surge. Latest deep dive w/ @PhilipRucker @jdawsey1 @costareports
- After disastrous communications during the 2001 anthrax attacks, the CDC wrote a 450-page manual for how to communicate during public health crises. Trump is breaking every rule in the playbook. via @Carolynyjohnson @thewanreport
- Replying to @yabutaleb7The top health official, Azar, called Trump on Jan. 18 to warn him about coronavirus. Before he could get a word in, Trump interjected to berate him about a fumbled vaping flavor ban. Azar asked a confidante for advice about how to break through to Trump
- New: A group of 30 liberal lawmakers is calling on Biden to shift his strategy on the Ukraine war and pursue direct negotiations with Russia to reach a ceasefire. It marks the first time prominent Democrats have pushed Biden to change his strategy.
- Fauci spoke bluntly with @jdawsey1 & me abt the difficult winter ahead, the diminishing influence of the task force, how he and Birx rarely see the president and the administration's response. "We’re in for a whole lot of hurt. It’s not a good situation." washingtonpost.com/politics/fauci…
- NEW: Kushner has set up his own team outside of the official coronavirus task force overseen by Pence made up of gov allies and private industry reps that some have dubbed a "shadow task force". He went on the record to explain. w/ @AshleyRParker @jdawsey1
- Bernie Sanders is introducing opioid legislation today that goes directly after the drug manufacturers and would impose fines of up to $7.8 billion
- More detail: The game-changer was data officials reviewed yesterday showing that vaxxed ppl infected with delta have the same viral load as unvaxxed. Vaccinated are still far less likely to get seriously sick, but the data suggests they can transmit delta.
- NEW: The coronavirus effort led by Kushner has partly relied on volunteers from PE and consulting firms. One grew so concerned about the inexperience of those securing PPE for hospitals that they filed a complaint w/ House Oversight. w/ @AshleyRParker
