简体中文
**Note: **The following article is taken from the Chinese-language opinion column "The Real Point".
Dr. Rick Bright, who was ousted last month as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, has filed a whistleblower complaint with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel. In the 86-page document, he lists numerous examples of the government's mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic and claims that he was removed from post illegally. "I was pressured to let politics and cronyism drive decisions over the opinions of the best scientists we have in government," said the infectious disease expert.
According to CNN, Bright issued a series of warnings to senior health officials at an internal meeting in January, cautioning against problems including a serious shortage of medical protective materials, such as face masks. His concerns were met with "indifference which then developed into hostility" by leaders at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). "It became increasingly clear [...] that HHS leadership was doing nothing to prepare for the imminent mask shortage," he said.
The slow response to the pandemic by U.S. decision makers was highlighted in an article carried by The Washington Post. It said that it took 70 days from that initial notification for President Trump to finally realize that coronavirus was not a distant threat or a harmless flu strain well under control. He downplayed the coronavirus 34 times and said that it would "miraculously" go away 13 times. It was not until the outbreak inside the country triggered massive stock market slumps that the U.S. leadership decided to implement stronger measures.
What happened in the States during the early days of the pandemic is reflected in an old Chinese saying, which says it's easy to defeat the demon in the mountain but hard to beat the demon in one's heart. Politicians' obsession with personal political gains led to the lack of respect and protection of people's lives and well-being. Tens of thousands have fallen victim to U.S. political vanity.
Bright also noted in his complaint that he was removed because "his efforts to prioritize science and safety over political expediency and to expose practices that posed a substantial risk to public health and safety, especially as it applied to chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, rankled those in the Administration who wished to continue to push this false narrative."
What he endured was partly the result of anti-intellectualism and populism that has been spreading across the country. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top medical expert on the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S., has also faced such challenge. He has been criticized by top decision makers and right-wing politicians because of his insistence on scientific prevention and control approaches. Dr. Fauci was even blocked by the White House last week from testifying at a House hearing on the government's pandemic response. He has even faced death threats.
Furthermore, Bright exposed months of turmoil inside one of the key HHS divisions charged with responding to the coronavirus pandemic. This comes as no surprise as decision makers were busy with verbal fights. The governors of New York, New Jersey and other states complained to the media that the lack of coordinated action by the federal government had caused tremendous chaos in various places and had left them scrambling for pandemic prevention resources.
According to Business Insider, the White House's shadow coronavirus task force used a spreadsheet called 'VIP Update' to procure personal protective equipment from inexperienced Trump allies over legitimate vendors. It is why the CNN article said that Dr. Bright's allegations "raised serious questions about political bias creeping into the government's response to the pandemic."
The pandemic should not be used for personal political gains. Politicians in Washington must focus on scientific prevention itself so the nation can emerge from under the dark cloud of the virus at the earliest opportunity.
