Donald Trump threatens funding cuts if schools do not fully reopen
The Pretext
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump pressured the government’s top public health experts on Wednesday to water down recommendations.
This was regarding how the nation’s schools can reopen safely this fall and threatened to cut federal funding for districts that defied his demand to resume classes in person.
Once again rejecting the advice of the specialists who work for him, Trump dismissed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s advice.
Within hours, the White House announced that the agency would issue new recommendations in the days to come.
The Situation
The president’s criticisms, in a barrage of Twitter threats, inflamed a difficult debate.
This has challenged educators and parents across the country as they seek ways to safely resume teaching American children by September.
Even as the coronavirus is spreading faster than ever in the United States, Trump expressed no concern about the health implications of reopening in person.
Neither has he provided any support for compromise plans that many districts are considering.
His all-or-nothing stance left him at odds with the nation’s two largest school districts.
The End
But Trump’s attack on the CDC underscored his growing impatience with public health experts.
He undeniably considers them obstacles to his ambitions of reopening the country after months of lockdown.
He significantly trails Joe Biden,in most polls, and has brushed off warnings and pushed states to reopen businesses.
Why? Well, in hopes of reviving the crippled economy before the election on Nov. 3, a goal that would be hamstrung if parents had to remain at home with their children this fall, you know.
“I disagree with @CDCgov,” Trump wrote on Twitter on Wednesday, a day after hosting a series of calls pressure schools to reopen fully.
“While they want them open, they are asking schools to do very impractical things. I will be meeting with them!!!”
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