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It resembled something from a horror movie or some dystopian universe. But it was not — it took place right here, in the United States.
What caused this pile-up of people? Simple: A lack of planning by Trump and his administration.
If there had been proper planning by the Trump administration, protocols could have been put in place to ensure a smooth functioning and health conscious way to effect this new policy. Instead, it was a sea of confusion that potentially resulted in more Americans contracting the virus.
Ann Lewis Schmidt, a passenger returning from Iceland, told CNN that after arriving at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, passengers first waited in a line to have passports checked and then went on a second line to undergo medical screening.
It “seems backwards, as if someone had a fever, they should have been never allowed in these lines for four hours,” Schmidt said, adding that passengers were in “very close quarters.”
“So if we didn’t have the virus before, we have a great chance of getting it now!”
Over at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, passengers said there was a shortage of government forms, no hand sanitizer and shared pens.
“The crowds & lines O’Hare are unacceptable & need to be addressed immediately,” he wrote. “These crowds are waiting to get through customs which is under federal jurisdiction.”
The governor called on Trump and Vice President Mike Pence “to do something NOW.”
“Admin was unprepared after Presidential ban on travel from Europe,” he wrote.
He said CBP “continually adjusts its resources as needed” and would continue to do so.
“With this national emergency, there will unfortunately be times of disruption and increased processing times for travelers. CBP is working around the clock to minimize these inconveniences.”
The question, though, is why wasn’t the Trump administration prepared to properly implement its own policy? It obviously understood that thousands of citizens and permanent residents would be returning to the United States. The administration should have set up a system that was efficient and effective, and should have ensured social distancing of people waiting for hours on line, instead of risking infecting healthy people.
The outbreak of an infectious disease, be it the coronavirus or Ebola which happened under Obama’s watch, tests a president’s leadership and ability to handle a crisis.
So far, Trump has failed that test. And worse, his administration’s failure to prepare for its own “enhanced entry screening” program may actually result in infecting healthy Americans with the potentially deadly Covid-19.
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