Welp, he gone and dunnit. The President* of the United States went and got hisself infected with the China Virus.
And the nation shares a deep sense of schadenfreude.
What a moron.
Oh, the right is suddenly calling for compassion and empathy. Nope, sorry. The man who has done so much damage to this country? The person who has drug our country through crisis after crisis for four years? The man who has gleefully cheered the misfortune of others? The person whose gross negligence has caused thousands and thousands of Americans to lose their lives? Nope, no compassion from this Resister. The punishment almost fits the crime. So, I'll pass on compassion. I'll save it for all the souls he has harmed.
To be clear: I don't want him to die. Not at all. I want him to get COVID toes. I want him to have a drenching fever. I want his lungs to hurt. I want him to feel numbness in his arm as COVID throws a small clot. I want him to feel scared and alone. I want him to gasp for breath. I want him to feel every inch of the endotracheal tube. I want him to have to talk to Melania on FaceTime, with a nurse holding the iPad. I want him to lay with IVs in his arms (full of bleach, please). I want him to have nightmares of masked and hooded aliens coming to take him away, just like my post-COVID patient experienced in the ICU. I want him to feel like he is living in a cage.
I want him to feel all of that, and then I want him to live. I want him sit with his oxygen cannula chapping his nose, watching election returns on FAUX News and see every vote counted. I want him to watch as the American people take power away from him. I want him to walk out of the Whitewash House on January 20, grasping his walker, hobbling toward the armored car that will take him straight to the Graybar Hotel.
Yanno, it's not my usual to have a complete and utter lack of compassion. It's my opposite, in fact. But that's what we have on our 1,352nd backwards day. I wish I could wish him well, but the truth is: Karma. Is. A. Bitch.
If hating him is wrong, I don't wanna be right. I'll let more lofty individuals (like Joe Biden and Barack Obama) take the high road on this one. Or Damon Young. (Seriously, read Damon Young)
And let us remember what his favorite book says:
But first I have to share more of my outrage.
The Timeline.
Details of the timeline of his diagnosis are a little muddled and confusing, but there are some reports that he tested positive earlier than he admitted and yet went ahead with public appearances.
At a briefing on Saturday, physician Sean Conley stated that 45 was "72 hours into the diagnosis." That would put his diagnosis on Wednesday, not Friday, when he announced it on Twitter. We know that the virus has an incubation period and positive test results do not appear until several days after exposure, so he was likely infectious at the debate on Tuesday.
And according to the New York Times, "Dr. Brian Garibaldi, another physician treating the president, also said that Mr. Trump had received an experimental antibody therapy “about 48 hours ago,” which would have been midday Thursday — before the confirmation test Dr. Conley said came back positive that evening and a full day before the White House disclosed the treatment on Friday."
And it so happens that he arrived too late to Tuesday's debate that he was not able to be tested. His whole family, as well as GOP Senators and other supporters and inner circle, sat in close proximity without masks.
Hope Hicks started feeling ill while on Air Force One returning from a fundraiser in Minneapolis on Wednesday. She was diagnosed the next day. Despite his close advisor being ill, he continued on to a fundraiser in New Jersey where he met – maskless – with 18 donors on Thursday.
Finally in the wee hours of Friday morning, at 1am Washington time, he tweets out that he and Melania tested positive. One o'clock in the morning! What kind of bullshit is that? It's gold-plated TЯUMP Brand Bullshit. That's what it is.
On Saturday, there was a gathering to announce the nomination of Judge what's-her-name for SCOTUS. His inner circle were all there. No one wore masks.
Since his announcement on Friday:
- He has been hospitalized at Walter Reed Hospital, where he is getting world-class treatment and will receive therapies that are not available to all. Days upon days of hospitalization, with care from the finest physicians in the land, cared for with all the treatment options available, all for the low, low cost of $750 in federal taxes. (Thanks Sister Resister Anne for that point!)
- He sent out a jumbled, nonsensical, tired, less-orange-looking video Saturday afternoon. I'm not sure how much I trust him. Next time, can he please hold up a current newspaper?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 3, 2020
- The following people have tested positive so far:
- Kellyanne Conway, present at the debate.
- Chris Christie, present at the debate and coached 45 ahead of the debate.
- Sen. Mike Lee, present (maskless) at the justice nomination event and had met privately with whatever her name is.
- Sen. Thom Tillis.
- Rev. John Jenkins, Notre Dame president, present (maskless) at Whitewash House justice nomination event.
- Bill Steplen, 45's campaign manager.
- and others in his circle have tested positive, while most of his family members have tested negative.
- VP Pence has tested negative, and I hope he stays negative, for the sake of the country in these chaotic days. But, please, Speaker Pelosi, stay well and prepare....
- Joe and Jill Biden have also tested negative so far. Here's a little contact tracing info. We'll have to watch and see who becomes ill in the next few days. Stay healthy, Joe. Stay healthy. And I truly wish the best for Melania, and for every other person who has had the misfortune to breathe that man's air. I do not wish bad for any of them. Just for the one.
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