Source: Chip Somodevilla / Getty
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has now described the coronavirus as “inevitable” and per usual, Donald Trump and his administration aren’t doing enough. Despite the scare of the contagious virus and Trump’s inadequate response, Black Twitter has still managed to find joy in it all.
According to NBC News, Trump told Americans on Wednesday that there’s a “very low” risk of a coronavirus outbreak in the United States and he designated any future responsibility to Vice President Mike Pence and Congress.
However, at the same podium in the White House briefing room, the highest-ranking career official at the CDC told a different story.
“Our aggressive containment strategy here in the United States has been working,” said Principal Deputy Director Ann Shuchat. “However, we do expect more cases, and this is a good time to prepare.”
Granted, Trump could be right that the coronavirus won’t spread as quickly as it did in places like China, Japan and Italy, but we might want to listen to Shuchat too, the actual medical professional.
If the virus does spread across the U.S., many people won’t be prepared thanks to Trump who basically disbanded the part of his national security team that was responsible for responding to infectious disease outbreaks. The department also significantly scaled back its efforts to fight global health threats in the last couple of years. On top of all this, Trump slashed the budget of the CDC and imposed a hiring freeze in the first year of his administration resulting in 700 jobs vacancies.
Yet, there’s nothing to worry about, according to Trump.
“The Number 1 priority from our standpoint is the health and safety of the American people,” Trump said Wednesday. “The risk to the American people remains very low.”
“We’re ready to adapt, and we’re ready to do what we have to as the disease spreads, if it spreads,” he continued. “We’re very, very ready for this.”
Trump then pointed to a study from Johns Hopkins University that ranked the United States as the most prepared of the world’s countries to handle a pandemic or an epidemic. The U.S. scored 83.5 out of 100 on the index, a little higher than the U.K.’s 77.9.
Despite this, the U.S. ranked 175th in health care access and 54th in exercising response plans — factors that were missing in the president’s presentation. Various Democrats have said they don’t believe Trump is taking the situation seriously enough. They’ve especially said that his $2.5 billion in emergency funding is extremely inadequate.
Trump explained on Wednesday that he’d agree to the $4 billion that some Republicans on Capitol Hill suggest or even as much as $8 billion.
Despite Trump’s lackluster response, Black Twitter isn’t panicking.
In fact, many Black social media users had jokes to keep from worrying about the virus. Check out some of the commentary below.
SEE ALSO
Milwaukee Brewery Shooter Described As ‘Family Man’ By Neighbors
Vanessa Bryant Shows Admiration For Kobe Bryant’s Sister’s Tribute Tattoo
