Intentional Disregard: Trump’s Authoritarianism During the Covid-19 Pandemic, August 2020

A new report published Wednesday details months of willful failures to confront the coronavirus pandemic by the White House and paints Donald Trump's authoritarian tactics during that national crisis as an overt assault on the nation's democratic institutions ahead of elections in November.

The report by Common Cause—[click here]: "Intentional Disregard: Trump's Authoritarianism During the Covid-19 Pandemic," (pdf)—highlights Trump's coronavirus response as part of a larger effort by the president to attack U.S. democracy.

CONTENTS

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . 3

President Trump’s ad-lib pandemic response has undermined government institutions and failed to provide states with critically needed medical supplies. . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Divider in Chief: Trump’s Politicization of the Pandemic . . . .. 9

Trump has amplified special interest-funded “liberate” protests and other “reopen” efforts, directly contradicting public health guidance. . .  . . . 9

Trump and his enablers in the Senate have failed to appropriate adequate funds to safely run this year’s elections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

President Trump has attacked voting by mail—the safest, most secure way to cast ballots during the pandemic—for purely personal, partisan advantage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The Trump administration has failed to safeguard the health of detained and incarcerated individuals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . 14

The Trump administration must act to make telephone and video communication free for people being detained by ICE. . . . . . . . . . . . 15

The Trump Administration’s 2020 Census “mistakes” may cost communities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

The Trump administration has failed to provide additional funding for the Census Bureau amid extending census operations. . . . . . . . . 16

Me, My Friends and I: of, by and for Trump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Trump’s inconsistent guidance and threats have undermined states’ responses to COVID-19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Trump has abused his power and misused Treasury Department mailings for partisan purposes. .. . . . . . . . . . . 20

Trump has done the bidding of CEOs seeking immunity from lawsuits by workers and consumers who get sick with COVID-19. . . . . . . .  . . . 21

“Small business” rescue funds flowed to Trump mega donors and other wealthy interests. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . 23

Trump has undermined oversight of the federal government’s pandemic response. . . . . . . . . 24

Trump has attacked and undermined the WHO to distract from his own mismanagement of the U.S. pandemic response. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Information Manipulation: Anti-Facts, Alternate Reality, Control of Information Flow . . . . . . . 29

President Trump has attacked journalists covering the pandemic, undermining the First Amendment and press freedoms. . . . . . . . . . . 29

FCC’s repeal of its net neutrality framework weakens its ability to connect Americans during the pandemic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . 30

INTENTIONAL DISREGARD: Trump’s Authoritarianism During the COVID-19 Pandemic FCC’s actions on Lifeline have widened the digital divide for low-income communities. . . . . . . . 31

Trump’s attack on our institutions reaches the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) at a time when we need our postal system more than ever. . . .  . 32

Conclusion: We Can Fix This! Indeed, We MUST! . . . . . . . . . 34