5/13/2020

My dear Friend & POTUS, DJT,

            What are your thoughts on the bill that LA Sen. John Kennedy talked to you about yesterday? It makes sense to me that municipalities & states should have some freedom in spending CV $. I’m glad that you’re receptive to that idea. How does it fit with AMM’s idea to let the states declare bankruptcy? I have to admit I don’t fully understand the implications of that idea, but it doesn’t sit well. You know all about bankruptcy so maybe you can fill me in.

I hope your meeting with CO Gov Jared Polis (JSP) & ND Gov. Doug Burgum (DJB) goes well. It sounds like DJB has contact tracing figured out so maybe he can give you some suggestions. JSP hopes to “make sure that the president is not living in the ivory tower in the White House and is really aware of what’s going on across the country” & would like to enhance his testing capabilities.

Maybe you could help JSP get a Roche Cobas 6800 like we have at UCD. It can process 1000 tests/day & once this is all over can be used for screening blood for HIV, West Nile & Hepatitis. The machine is the size of an SUV & probably costs millions, but procuring more of those Swiss robots might be worth it in the long run.

            Did you read the Op-Ed page of the NYT today? I encourage you to take a look at Michelle Alexander’s piece about “decarceration” & Wahleah Johns’ piece about the Navajo. Both authors stress the idea that ALL lives are sacred. I’m afraid that your GOP buddies don’t always express that idea. In describing the wisdom of her grandmother, WJ points out, “Unlike some prominent Republicans who have suggested we could sacrifice our elders to help the economy, we honor ours.” MA shared a letter from a man at the Marion Correctional Institution who explains how prisoners are having to nurse one another & are in desperate straits. She noted that rather than assuming that some lives are more valuable than other, we need to recognize, “There but for the grace of God go I.”

            HYITL,