If you watched President Trump’s televised address on the coronavirus the other night, it certainly didn’t conjure up memories of F.D.R.’s famous “fireside chats,” which did much to allay fears during the Great Depression and World War II.
As Trump fumbled through the broadcast, he “decided to ad-lib — and his errors triggered a market meltdown, panicked travelers overseas and crystallized for his critics just how dangerously he has mismanaged the response to the coronavirus,” wrote the Washington Post.
Said Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute: “This is an unmitigated disaster that the administration has brought upon the population, and I don’t say this lightly.”
Venerable Esquire scribe Charles Pierce had it.
“An unnerving revelation struck me as I watched the president* deliver his address to the nation on Wednesday night concerning this country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. At this point in his woebegone administration*, I much prefer the president* as the vituperative seventh-grade name-calling goon that he is on the stump than I do his periodic attempts to be a world leader. The former is more natural, more authentic, and therefore, and in a perverse way, more comforting. The latter just seems dangerous and weird.
Amen. Just 235 days until the election, folks.
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The NDP on Thursday called on Secretary of State Bob Evnen and Governor Pete Ricketts to consider moving entirely to Vote-by-Mail ballots for the May 12 Primary Election in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Health officials are urging an abundance of caution in light of this pandemic, which is spreading rapidly and increasingly wreaking havoc across our country,” said NDP Chair Jane Kleeb. “This is a public health crisis and we need to avoid a situation where polling places and our elections get disrupted. We need an all Vote-By-Mail election to happen. Our party is ready to work hand-in-hand with the Republicans and the government to ensure a safe election and to protect our democracy.”
For our part, the NDP will mail Vote-By-Mail applications to voters in addition to launching an online portal for Nebraskans to request a Vote-By-Mail Application be sent to them. See the online request form here.
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We were sad we had to postpone our Salute to Senators event Wednesday night due to concerns about the coronavirus, but glad to donate the food to the People’s City Mission.
Our team huddled with the hotel staff and our state senators and decided to postpone the event to ensure everyone is safe and healthy. Once we are past this public health crisis, we will update everyone on a new date and location.
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In more coronavirus news, the March SCC Meeting and County Party Convention Training — previously planned for Fremont — will be held only online and via phone.
Staff and officers will be at the IBEW Hall in Lincoln facilitating the meeting online on March 21. You can watch the meeting on the NDP Facebook page or call into the conference line.
We will NOT be in Fremont for the meeting. We appreciate the leadership of the Fremont local elected officials who are doing everything they can to keep everyone safe.
We also cancelled our Delegate 101 Training, which had been scheduled for March 16 in North Platte.
We will keep you all apprised of any developments impacting our state convention this June in Omaha and the Democratic National Convention this July in Milwaukee.
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We leave you this week with a rendering by Tom Toles of the Washington Post.
–By Kevin O’Hanlon/NDP Communications Director
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IMPORTANT DATES
NOTE: All of the NDP’s in-person events have been postponed until further notice. Check our Facebook page and website for updates. If you had planned to attend any non-NDP events, we urge you to check with the organizers on the status.
March 21: March SCC Meeting Facebook Livestream
