U.S. Department of Treasury
Officials in at least seven states are reporting that the federal government is seizing hospitals’ orders of masks, testing supplies, thermometers, and other equipment necessary to treat coronavirus victims and protect front-line health workers.
A Texas clinic administrator was “flabbergasted” when a shipment of 20,000 masks was hijacked by FEMA, which offered no notice or details about its actions, according to The Los Angeles Times.
Wikimedia
President Trump has told states that they’re on their own when it comes to obtaining needed coronavirus supplies:
“The Federal government is not supposed to be out there buying vast amounts of items and then shipping. You know, we’re not a shipping clerk.”
States then sought a workaround—obtaining the equipment on their own—but FEMA is actively working against states and hospitals when they do so, putting patients and health workers in danger.
Wikimedia
Trump is famous for what Freud called projection—that is, attributing to others his own twisted fears, desires, and motivations.
This may explain why Trump, with no evidence, accused hospitals of running a black market for coronavirus equipment, suggesting that supplies were “going out the back door.”
It turns out that it’s the feds who are seizing supplies without explanation.
Flickr/Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
When Trump advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner redefined the purpose of the federal stockpile of medical supplies, shifting the burden to states, language on a government website changed overnight to match his statements.
The revelation that the FEMA is seizing critical supplies intended for front-line workers suggests it’s time for another language change. How about “We will steal your medical supplies?”
