White House memos warned in run-up to pandemic of up to 2M deaths, economic devastation
Top White House trade adviser Peter Navarro warned in stark terms about how deadly and economically devastating the coronavirus outbreak could be, weeks before it became a full-blown pandemic.
Navarro delivered the warnings to others at the White House in internal memos in January and February, saying that the United States could see up to 2 million deaths and trillions of dollars in economic damage…. The first Navarro memo was dated Jan. 29 and was addressed to the White House National Security Council, In it, Navarro made his case for an “immediate travel ban on China.”
“This lack of protection elevates the risk of the coronavirus evolving into a full-blown pandemic, imperiling the lives of millions of Americans,” Navarro wrote in the memo, according to the Times.
The memo reportedly warned of up to $5.7 trillion in economic costs and up to a half-million American deaths in a worst-case scenario.
In late February Navarro penned another memo, this time addressed to the president himself and escalating the warnings.
The Feb.
23
memo warned that “there is an increasing probability of a full-blown COVID-19 pandemic that could infect as many as 100 million Americans, with a loss of life as many as 1-2 million souls.”
The estimate was ultimately in line with what officials say could have happened without any social distancing measures and other cautions now in place across the country.
Navarro added: “In this Administration, we take appropriate risks to protect the public. We move in
Trump Time
to solve problems.
[Q3604 - " Executive Time!" - Pre_public_awareness? ==
LIKE CLOCKWORK. [D][1-6] Enjoy the show! Q"
We always skate to where the puck might be—in this case a full-blown pandemic.”
Navarro wrote that he believed that the U.S. “CAN develop a vaccine and treatment therapeutics in half the usual time,” and said “we MUST get appropriate protective gear and point of care diagnostics.”
Navarro’s second memo went on to outline the need for additional personal protective equipment.
“This is the first line of defense for our health care workers and secondary workers in facilities such as elder care and skilled nursing,” Navarro wrote. “Key items include N-95 facemasks, goggles, gloves, Tyvek suits, ventilator circuits and Positive Air Pressure Respirators (PAPRs).”
Navarro, at the time, called for more than $618 million for PPE and ventilators.
A source told Fox News on Tuesday that many felt that Navarro’s February memo came off as aggressive; however, the source also said that there were some officials within the National Security Council and the White House who tracked along the same lines as Navarro.
Now, the source said, Navarro’s projections were seemingly accurate.
Last week, during a White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing, the president warned that “a very painful two weeks” were ahead.
“The surge is coming, and it’s coming pretty strong,”
Trump said.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-memos-warned-in-run-up-to-pandemic-of-up-to-2m-deaths-economic-devastation