Between the beach, the family fun, the picnics and the sales, it’s important to take a moment to think about what Memorial Day really is. We are honoring and remembering those men and women who have sacrificed their lives defending our country and our values. Think for a moment, as you look at the images below, of those they have left behind and share for a second in their grief because they have sacrificed too. This is what Memorial Day is all about.
It’s Memorial Day. For many it’s a day for barbecue, for the beach, for burgers and beer. But I would hope that we would take a few minutes to remember those whom we have lost. There is plenty of time to celebrate victories and our military but today is the time to recognize the true cost of the wars we have sent our men and women to fight and, again, remember those we have lost.
Thank you.
A few days ago I published a list of five areas that need attention from the incoming Biden administration. Number 5 on the list was ‘End the Pandemic’ but really that needs to be number one. Ending the pandemic is a critical prerequisite to getting much else done. Here’s what I think needs to be done.
We’re fortunate in that we have two vaccines, both based on mRNA technology that are shown to be highly effective and are being produced and distributed to the states. More are on the way. Here’s a rundown.
The Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine uses an engineered virus to carry certain coronavirus genes into cells and have them make virus proteins which generate an immune response. Based on Phase 3 trials it appears to have good efficacy – between 62 and 90%. In what appears to be a paradox, trial participants who got a lower first dose appear to have a better immune response. There is some thought that the larger first dose triggers an immune response to the vaccine itself. In any case the vaccine has been approved for emergency use in a number of countries and AstraZeneca is having discussions with the FDA about US approval. In contrast to Pfizer and Moderna, AstraZeneca has indicated that it can produce up to 2 billion doses a year. The US has pre-purchased 300 million doses.
Johnson & Johnson has developed a similar vaccine which showed good results in Phase 2 trials. Results from Phase 3 trials are expected within days. Unlike the vaccines above, the J&J vaccine requires only a single dose. The US has pre-purchased 100 million doses of the J&J vaccine and, while there have been some initial production delays, the company indicates it can produce 1 billion doses in 2021.
Novavax, a Maryland company, has developed a vaccine which sticks virus proteins onto microscopic particles to be injected. Preliminary and Phase 2 results have been promising and a Phase 3 trial was launched in August in the UK with results likely early this year. Novavax expects to deliver 100 million doses to the US in 2021.
There are dozens of other vaccines in testing or production, but mostly outside the US. Russia’s ‘Sputnik’ vaccine seems to be quite effective. But looking at just the vaccines above, the US should receive 900 million doses in 2021 – more than enough to vaccinate the entire population.
The trick, of course is to get the vaccine into our arms and not sit on the shelf while more people are infected an die. Here’s what we need to do:
There’s plenty of evidence showing that the virus spreads efficiently in poorly ventilated indoor areas. Because of the rapid spread of the virus, we’ve close schools and taken other steps that damage the economy and our well-being. We also need to compensate the restaurants and bars we shut down by paying their employees and their expenses until we can allow them to reopen.
There is strong evidence that high-filtration masks are much more efficient at reducing transmission of the virus. Consider using the Defense Production Act to produce large numbers of these masks and sending sets to every household.
So far around 20 million Americans have been infected and more than 10 million vaccinated. By mid-May we could see cumulative infections of around 25 million and about 100 million vaccinated and the transmission of the virus should slow dramatically. We just need to keep focused and take care of ourselves and others.
Ten days from now, on January 20th at noon, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the next President of the United States and Kamala Harris will be sworn in as the next Vice-President. With Harris as Vice-President, the balance of power in the Senate will swing to the Democrats (albeit only slightly) and the obstructionist Mitch McConnell will be relegated to minority leader.
With Democrats in control of the House of Representatives, the Senate and the Presidency, there is an opportunity to get things moving again and accomplish a lot, and there is certainly a lot to do. Over the next several days I’m going to try to describe what I think needs to get done. I’m going to try to organize my thoughts into five categories:
Please feel free to comment with your suggestions. I’m sure there are things I could have said better and maybe some things I’ve left out.
-Tom
I understand there are a lot of people who are furious with the President and afraid of what he might do. I’m furious with the man too, but for more than just his actions this past Wednesday. However, I don’t think impeachment is the way to go. Let’s look at the calendar to better understand why.
The House is not likely to have a vote on any impeachment articles until sometime later this coming week. In any case, the Senate is not in session (except for pro forma sessions) until January 19 – one day before Inauguration Day. Majority Leader McConnell is unlikely to take up any impeachment articles that day (Chuck Schumer will not be majority leader until Kamala Harris is confirmed on the 20th).
So, if the House does vote for impeachment articles, the Senate will have to take them up after Biden is confirmed and Trump is out of office. This will have the unfortunate effect of delaying confirmation of Biden’s cabinet nominees and any further COVID relief legislation. It would be very unfortunate if that were the case. Given the delay in transition, it’s very important that Biden’s nominees get confirmed and in place as soon as possible.
Further, the effect of impeachment may only be to make Trump ineligible for running again in 2024 and even that will require two thirds of the Senate to agree which I think is very unlikely.
There’s lots to do folks and I’ll be talking about some of it soon, so let’s have our Congress get on with implementing Biden’s agenda and stop wasting time.
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