So here I am, a little over 6 weeks away from my 64th birthday. I'm short and built like a fireplug, like my Aunt Betty, my maternal grandfather, and his father. - What can I say? We're not your commercial-looking Swedish-type people - we're short and stout. Period. I have a lot more English blood in my veins (and genes) than Swedish, and a lot of the women in old photos were also short and round - I just follow the family norm.
Unfortunately, I also have high blood pressure, which I keep under control with medication and little salt intake. Both of my parents were chain-smoker, so I have nasty lungs. I've been prone to bronchitis all my life, and was diagnosed with asthma caused by smoke more than 35 years ago. I have COPD - chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Thanks to the blood pressure problem, my COPD, and my age, I am classified as a highly susceptible person for infection from COVID-19.
My 38-year-old nephew has recovered from his infection, which he apparently picked up while visiting a friend with leukemia in Seattle, Washington. My cousin, Captain Neil E. Barnes, retired from the Wichita, Kansas Fire Department, was not as lucky. He started to feel achy on Saturday, April 11; on the 12th he lost his sense of smell; he died Tuesday night, April 14, from COVID-19. We, his family are grieving - and angry that our federal government did not respond in any way to the World Health Organization's warning on January 30, and is still, essentially, sitting on its thumbs.
All nations of the world were notified by WHO, on 30 January 2020, that they were announcing the highest level of health alert possible - a public health emergency of international concern. As of last night, around 8 pm Mountain Daylight Time, there were 923,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States and its territories, and there had been 52,234 deaths confirmed from COVID-19 infections. At that same time, 4,692,797 United States citizens had been tested for the disease - out of over 331 million people. That's only 1.55 percent of the population of the US. And WHO announced today that people have recovered from COVID-19 may become re-infected - there have been many cases of this reported in other countries.
What do I do with my days, now? I used to walk multiple dogs on an almost daily basis. No more. I stay inside the apartment (980 square feet - 2 bedrooms, 1 1/2 baths, a laundry closet which contains the water heater, a combined kitchen and dining room and living room; with a sliding glass door to a second-floor balcony that is 15 feet long and 6 1/2 feet wide and is trapezoidal) except to go to the trash or recycle dumpsters in the parking, or to go to the grocery store. Anytime I am outside the apartment, other than on the balcony, I wear a face mask.
I have a morning routine - get up, feed the cats, clean the litter boxes, get dressed, eat, wash the dishes and brush my teeth. Then I turn on my PC - check e-mail, post on Facebook and check birthdays and comments, read 4 news sites, then re-check e-mail and Facebook. - Lovey, my oldest cat, gets brunch about 11 am. I have lunch between noon and 2, usually.
Once a week, I get my list written and head for the grocery store, with my little 4-wheel "granny shopping cart" in tow. I always check first for toilet tissue, facial tissue, and paper towels, as we're running low. I also always check for Lysol spray, alcohol, bleach, hand soap, disinfectant wipes, and laundry detergent that we can use. Then, finally, on to the actual food items. So far, we've always had plenty of meat available at our local store. Brand name snacks are also there - other than Planter's nuts and Orville Reddenbacher popcorn. But canned goods, pasta and rice are sometimes hard to find. However, there are plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit. So shopping is a 50-50 shot.
Beatrice put a huge shopping list up for King Soopers/Kroger here, and it was delivered yesterday. Four of 50 items arrived, and one of them was nothing like what was ordered. But she paid the shopper $20, anyway. (The item ordered was a can of Lysol disinfectant spray, any fragrance; what was delivered was Frebreeze fabric odor control spray - of which we have multiple bottles.)
Sometimes I read and nap after lunch, with both cats as companions. If the weather is nice, I'll sit on the balcony and read while the cats sprawl in the sun.
In the late afternoon and evening, I work on my blog - the one you're reading now. Actually, I work on the daily update regarding COVID-19, checking news stories and sources, which can take awhile.
I'm the one who cooks supper, usually every other night, since I'm the one with all the food allergies. If I cook, Beatrice, my roommate, washes the dishes. Then it's more internet time, a shower, and reading before bed. One of the things I'm doing right now, on my Facebook page, is posting 3 times a day, a photo of a different celebrity and letting people guess who it is. That's entertaining...
Today was kitty water fountain day - I took the electric cat water fountain apart for cleaning. I do this every four weeks. Two large plastic parts go in the dishwasher on "Sanitize" mode, while the 4 parts of the motor that send the water through the system system soak in hot water and vinegar for 4 hours. Then I get to "brush" the parts with a pipe cleaner, reassemble the motor, put a new charcoal water filter back inside the two plastic parts, fill it up, plug it in... and voila! A three level water fountain with two water slides for the cats to drink from. They love it. - Today I also opened up the top of the electric range, disconnected the heating elements and put the drip collars into the dishwasher to "Sanitize" along with the cat fountain parts...
A friend gave us a huge London Broil steak a few weeks ago and I finally thawed it and put it in the crockpot with potato chunks, carrots and half-ears of corn. Coked it for 4 1/2 hours, then made gravy from beef broth and corn starch.... I think there is enough left for 2 meals in the large pot I transferred it to last night.
Our "Economic Impact Checks" arrived in the mail yesterday. We had thought that since we both receive Social Security payments by direct deposit, we would receive our $1200 government checks the same way. But the President insisted on printing checks, using envelopes, and sending through the US mail, checks that could easily have been placed into our accounts via the usual method - direct deposit. This also means that to deposit the check, we have to go to the bank and deposit the check. We don't have a car, so we can't go through the drive through ATMs, we can only get inside the bank Monday through Friday between 8:30 and 9:30 by showing a photo ID showing that we're over 62 years old... Seems like another way to thwart the old and poor people of our nation...
Anyway - it's time for a late lunch, and then reading. Can't clean the cat fountain motor for another two hours; then I'll put it back together and get it going for Lovey and Nedi. Beatrice says she might order delivery for supper tonight. That'd be a nice change...
Enjoy your day or night - where ever you are!
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Friday, April 24, 2020
Trump's Brainstorm On Disinfectant And Bright Light During a Press Briefing
Source: CNN - Health - Written by Maggie Fox; Updated at 11:05 am EDT, Friday, 24 April 2020
"Bleach and Sunlight Might Kill Coronavirus On a Park Bench, But They Can Be Harmful To the Body
Bleach and sunlight can both kill the new novel coronavirus on surfaces outside the body, a federal official said Thursday at the daily White House briefing. But that simple scientific summary quickly turned into a puzzling brainstorm by President Donald Trump about how to treat COVID-19 patients, from injecting disinfectants - a dangerous prospect that could be fatal - and possibly streaming light into the body.
Here's what was said - and what science really tells us about safely killing viruses.
Bleach or Lysol should not be injected or ingested
Studies of the virus have shown that bleach kills COVID-19 on surfaces in about five (5) minutes, and isopropyl alcohol destroys it on surfaces even faster, Bill Bryan, a senior official at the US Department of Homeland Security, told reporters Thursday. Bryan, who is not a scientist, said a US Army biological laboratory outside Washington DC had been conducting tests on the virus.
Trump then said this: "And then I see the disinfectant where it knocks it out in one minute. Is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside or almost a cleaning... it would be interesting to check that."
Chlorine bleach is toxic. It can and does kill people who drink it. The US Food and Drug Administration regularly warns the public against drinking bleach, or even inhaling fumes from bleach. It's also irritating to the skin.
Following Trump's comments, the company that makes Lysol urged cutomers not to consume its cleaning products. "As a global leader in health and hygiene products, we must be clear that under no circumstances should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion, or any other route), " Reckitt Benckiser said in a statement.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week said calls about poisonings with cleaners and disinfectants had increased more than 20% in the first three months of 2020 - as COVID-19 cleaning increased - than from the same period a year earlier. Among cleaners, bleaches accounted for the largest percentage increase in calls from 2019 to 2020.
The CDC recommends using soap and water or bleach to kill the virus on surfaces. Rubbing alcohol that's at least 70% alcohol will also kill it on surfaces; 60% alcohol for your hands.
Sunlight can kill the virus but isn't a cure
Tests have also shown the virus in droplets of saliva survives best indoors and in dry conditions, Bryan said. "The virus dies the quickest in the presence of direct sunlight under these conditions," he said. "Our most striking observation to date is the powerful effect that solar light appears to have on killing the virus, both on surfaces and in the air."
Temperature and humidity also affect how long the virus survives, he said. Bryan called the finding "another weapon in the fight that we can add to it and in the summer." But he added: "It would be irresponsible for us to say that we feel the summer will totally kill the virus. We have an opportunity, though, to get ahead with what we know now and factor that into the decision-making."
Vice President Mike Pence called Bryan's presentation "encouraging news about the impact of that heat and sunlight have on the coronavirus, which will increase the confidence that we feel about the coming summer."
Then, Trump surmised: "Suppose that we hit the body with a tremendous, whether it's ultraviolet or just very powerful light and I think you said that it hasn't been checked and you're going to test it. Suppose you can bring the light inside the body." It was not immediately clear how the President might propose delivering light into the body.
Ultraviolet light can damage skin and lead to cancer if people get enough of it.
As for how the summer might impact the virus, members of an influential National Academy of Sciences committee told the White House earlier this month that it doesn't look like COVID-19 will go away once the weather warms up. "There is some evidence to suggest that (COVID-19) may transmit less efficiently in environments with higher ambient temperature and humidity; however, given the lack of host immunity globally, this reduction in transmission efficiency may not lead to a significant reduction in disease spread without the concomitant adoption of major public health interventions," the panel wrote, noting that the virus continued to spread in countries experiencing warm weather.
Myths already have been debunked
Trump's statements echo myths and rumors that got so rampant on the internet and in social media that the World Health Organization posted a myth busters page to debunk them.
* "No. Spraying alcohol or chlorine bleach all over your body will not kill viruses that have already entered your body," the WHO's page states. "Spraying such substances can be harmful to clothes or mucous membranes(such as the eyes and mouth. Be aware that both alcohol and chlorine bleach can be useful to disinfect surfaces, but they need to be used under appropriate recommendations."
* As for sunlight and heat, "exposing yourself to the sun or to temperatures higher than 25C (77F) degrees DOES NOT prevent the novel coronavirus disease," WHO says on its website. "You can catch COVID-19, no matter how sunny or hot the weather is. Countries with hot weather have reported cases of COVID-19."
* It also warns against using ultaviolet lamps, including tanning beds or lamps, to try to kill the virus. "UV lamps should not be used to sterilize hands or other areas of skin, as UV radiation can cause skin irritation," WHO cautions. "
"Bleach and Sunlight Might Kill Coronavirus On a Park Bench, But They Can Be Harmful To the Body
Bleach and sunlight can both kill the new novel coronavirus on surfaces outside the body, a federal official said Thursday at the daily White House briefing. But that simple scientific summary quickly turned into a puzzling brainstorm by President Donald Trump about how to treat COVID-19 patients, from injecting disinfectants - a dangerous prospect that could be fatal - and possibly streaming light into the body.
Here's what was said - and what science really tells us about safely killing viruses.
Bleach or Lysol should not be injected or ingested
Studies of the virus have shown that bleach kills COVID-19 on surfaces in about five (5) minutes, and isopropyl alcohol destroys it on surfaces even faster, Bill Bryan, a senior official at the US Department of Homeland Security, told reporters Thursday. Bryan, who is not a scientist, said a US Army biological laboratory outside Washington DC had been conducting tests on the virus.
Trump then said this: "And then I see the disinfectant where it knocks it out in one minute. Is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside or almost a cleaning... it would be interesting to check that."
Chlorine bleach is toxic. It can and does kill people who drink it. The US Food and Drug Administration regularly warns the public against drinking bleach, or even inhaling fumes from bleach. It's also irritating to the skin.
Following Trump's comments, the company that makes Lysol urged cutomers not to consume its cleaning products. "As a global leader in health and hygiene products, we must be clear that under no circumstances should our disinfectant products be administered into the human body (through injection, ingestion, or any other route), " Reckitt Benckiser said in a statement.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week said calls about poisonings with cleaners and disinfectants had increased more than 20% in the first three months of 2020 - as COVID-19 cleaning increased - than from the same period a year earlier. Among cleaners, bleaches accounted for the largest percentage increase in calls from 2019 to 2020.
The CDC recommends using soap and water or bleach to kill the virus on surfaces. Rubbing alcohol that's at least 70% alcohol will also kill it on surfaces; 60% alcohol for your hands.
Sunlight can kill the virus but isn't a cure
Tests have also shown the virus in droplets of saliva survives best indoors and in dry conditions, Bryan said. "The virus dies the quickest in the presence of direct sunlight under these conditions," he said. "Our most striking observation to date is the powerful effect that solar light appears to have on killing the virus, both on surfaces and in the air."
Temperature and humidity also affect how long the virus survives, he said. Bryan called the finding "another weapon in the fight that we can add to it and in the summer." But he added: "It would be irresponsible for us to say that we feel the summer will totally kill the virus. We have an opportunity, though, to get ahead with what we know now and factor that into the decision-making."
Vice President Mike Pence called Bryan's presentation "encouraging news about the impact of that heat and sunlight have on the coronavirus, which will increase the confidence that we feel about the coming summer."
Then, Trump surmised: "Suppose that we hit the body with a tremendous, whether it's ultraviolet or just very powerful light and I think you said that it hasn't been checked and you're going to test it. Suppose you can bring the light inside the body." It was not immediately clear how the President might propose delivering light into the body.
Ultraviolet light can damage skin and lead to cancer if people get enough of it.
As for how the summer might impact the virus, members of an influential National Academy of Sciences committee told the White House earlier this month that it doesn't look like COVID-19 will go away once the weather warms up. "There is some evidence to suggest that (COVID-19) may transmit less efficiently in environments with higher ambient temperature and humidity; however, given the lack of host immunity globally, this reduction in transmission efficiency may not lead to a significant reduction in disease spread without the concomitant adoption of major public health interventions," the panel wrote, noting that the virus continued to spread in countries experiencing warm weather.
Myths already have been debunked
Trump's statements echo myths and rumors that got so rampant on the internet and in social media that the World Health Organization posted a myth busters page to debunk them.
* "No. Spraying alcohol or chlorine bleach all over your body will not kill viruses that have already entered your body," the WHO's page states. "Spraying such substances can be harmful to clothes or mucous membranes(such as the eyes and mouth. Be aware that both alcohol and chlorine bleach can be useful to disinfect surfaces, but they need to be used under appropriate recommendations."
* As for sunlight and heat, "exposing yourself to the sun or to temperatures higher than 25C (77F) degrees DOES NOT prevent the novel coronavirus disease," WHO says on its website. "You can catch COVID-19, no matter how sunny or hot the weather is. Countries with hot weather have reported cases of COVID-19."
* It also warns against using ultaviolet lamps, including tanning beds or lamps, to try to kill the virus. "UV lamps should not be used to sterilize hands or other areas of skin, as UV radiation can cause skin irritation," WHO cautions. "
Thursday, April 23, 2020
New Health and Human Services Spokesman Michael Caputo is a Racist and Hater - See Deleted Tweets
Source: CNN - Politics - The KFile - Written by Andrew Kaczynski, Nathan McDermott, and Em Steck of CNN; Updated at 4:14 pm ET, Thursday, 23 April 2020
"New HHS Spokesman Made Racist Comments About Chinese People in Now-Deleted Tweets
The new spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services in a series of now-deleted Tweets made racist and derogatory remarks about Chinese people, said Democrats wanted COVID-19 to kill millions of people and accused the media of intentionally creating panic around the pandemic to hurt President Donald Trump. Michael Caputo, a long-time New York Republican political operative who worked on Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, was appointed last week as Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at HHS, a prominent communications role at the department which serves a central role in the federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Caputo, a prolific user who often Tweeted insults and profanity, recently erased nearly his entire Twitter history from before April 12, 2020. CNN's KFile used the Internet Archive's Way Back Machine to review more than 1300 deleted Tweets and reTweets from late February to early April, many of which were regarding the rapidly spreading COVID-19 virus. While he occasionally weighed in with praise for public officials or more straightforward observations, Tweets from this period are also littered with conspiracy theories and controversial language to go after perceived critics of the Trump administration.
In a series of Tweets on March 12, Caputo responded to a baseless conspiracy theory that the United States brought COVID-19 to Wuhan, China, by Tweeting that "millions of Chinese suck the blood out of rabid bats as an appetizer and eat the ass out of anteaters." He followed up at another user, "Don't you have a bat to eat?" and Tweeted at another user, "You're very convincing, Wang."
After publication, Caputo responded to CNN's request for comment by saying that reporting on his past Tweets is "fair game, dude. I don't care. It doesn't matter to me at all." He claimed that he deletes his Tweets "every month and I do it because it drives people mad." He Added "when you Tweet in spirited fashion, KFile is going to have them. I've known that all my days. So I don't mind what you've done." Caputo defended his past Twitter behavior saying he was "a defender of the President" Tweeting in a "spirited manner" that included calling out reporters, but he said he's "now a servant of the American people and some might be disappointed, but my Tweets will be different."
Spokespeople for HHS did not respond to requests for a comment. A spokesperson for the White House also declined to comment.
Caputo also used his Twitter account to aggressively attack Democrats and the media. In March, he referred to one White House reporter as "a dick" after that reporter had a heated exchange with the President. He said many Americans viewed reporters as "the enemy of the people" for "carrying water for the Chinese Communist Party." He implies that MSNBC host Joe Scarborough was guilty of sedition.
On March 8, he said a Democrat may try to inflict hundreds of thousands of American deaths from COVID-19, creating a hypothetical scenario comparable to James Hodgkinson, the anti-Trump man who shot House Majority Whip Representative Steve Scalise and four others during a Republican congressional baseball game practice in 2017. "Coronavirus is the Democrats' new Russia, their new Ukraine. And nobody will believe them except their zombies. But know this: The Dems' strategy to defeat @realDonaldTrump requires 100s of thousands of American deaths. Will one of their nutjobs make it happen, a la Hodgkinson?"
That same day, Caputo reTweeted conservative actor Nick Searcy saying, "Democrats are pulling for the virus to kill a lot of people." In other Tweets from March, Caputo claimed the media created "intentional" panic created around the outbreak, saying it was "orchestrated by soulless Trump critics who seize every crisis as an opportunity to stop him."
Caputo is a friend of political operative and Trump associate Roger Stone, leading a campaign to have Stone pardoned after he was found guilty of lying to Congress, obstructing a congressional inquiry, and witness tampering after Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation brought charges against him. He was sentenced to 40 months in prison in February.
Caputo was also interviewed by Mueller prosecutors and testified before Congress, and adamantly denied there was collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. Caputo resigned from the 2016 Trump campaign after he Tweeted "Ding Dong the witch is dead" following the news that its campaign manager Corey Lewandowski had been fired.
Here are some of Caputo's deleted Tweets pertaining to the unfolding health crisis in the United States:
* February 28 - "Bottom line, a lot of Americans have to get sick and die for coronavirus to tank the Trump economy. The Democrats' only hope for 2020 victory is a sunk economy. They're talking it down right now. But their strategy only works if a lot of Americans get sick and die."
* March 8 - "Coronavirus is the Democrats' new Russia, their new Ukraine. And nobody will believe them except their zombies. But know this: The Dems' strategy to defeat @realDonaldTrump requires 100s of thousands of American deaths. Will one of their nutjobs make it happen, a la Hodgkinson?"
* March 8 - reTweet from conservative actor Nick Searcy: "Democrats are pulling for the virus to kill a lot of people."
* March 8 - Tweets a screenshot of a Washington Post story, 'How the Trump Administration Lost Control of the Coronavirus Crisis.' "The Get Trump Media has shifted gears again: from the Russia Hoax to the Ukraine hoax to this. REMEMBER: Coronavirus is serious. The media is not."
* March 11 - Tweet from a chain on testing shortages - "A lot of the panic is orchestrated by soulless Trump critics who seize every crisis as an opportunity to stop him. And fail." Caput DID acknowledge that lack o f testing was an issue.
* March 11 - "For the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to work, 100,000+ Americans have to die. For the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to work, you have to believe the media. Media literacy is more vital now than ever. Question everything - smell the BS - start by doubting anonymous sources." Follow up Tweet: "There must be a national pandemic tragedy for the Democrats to win. They're counting on it now."
* March 12 - Tweet in response to baseless conspiracy theory that US brought COVID-19 to Wuhan that - "Sure, millions of Chinese suck the blood out of rabid bats as an appetizer and eat the ass out of anteaters but some foreigner snuck in a bottle of the good stuff. That's it." He follows up with - "Don't you have a bat to eat?" Then Tweets to another user - "You're very convincing, Wang."
* March 13 - Tweets that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is an "asshat."
* March 14 - "100s of thousands must die and the US economy must collapse for the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to succeed. They're getting so excited for the carnage. Sick people." He follows up - "Of course he has" - response to Trump being proactive. "This Democrat strategy, echoed by their conjugal media, will fail. Hoping your country fails and hundreds of thousands die so you can gain power is a sick and twisted strategy. America will punish them."
* March 14 - "Taking down names of progs who pick out of context phrases from Administration statements so they can 'LOL' for resistance cred while Washington deals with a pandemic. These are the biggest assholes. Hugest shitbags. Gargantuan sphincters."
* March 15 - Tweets in reference to a conspiracy theory about George Soros, prominent philanthropist and Democratic donor - "Are you kidding? Soros's political agenda REQUIRES a pandemic." Soros is the subject of numerous anti-Semitic conspiracy theories fueled by extremists, and in 2018 a pipe bomb was sent to his home in New York state.
* March 15 - "Wow. I started out feeling badly for you. At least now we know the Wuhan Virus doesn't have any lingering effects on douchebags." This was a Tweet to Daniel Goldman, a lawyer for House Democrats during Trump's Impeachment. Goldman had tested positive for COVID-19, and had Tweeted: "One final note: I may be the first you know who tested positive, but I won't be the last. Let's take care of each other, listen to the experts and the cities, states, and corporations who are taking the lead in the absence of the fed Government, and get through this together. END."
* March 16 - In response to a Tweet noting the Dow Jones Industrial Average had lost all its gains since Trump took office - "The Democrat celebration of the death and destruction will be held soon."
* March 17 - Tweets "#ChineseVirus" 20 times in a row. President Trump began calling COVID-19 the "Chinese virus" in March. Trump claimed he did so to counter conspiracy theories from the Chinese media and an official that the US had brought the virus to Wuhan. Trump claimed he also did it because it was "accurate... it comes from China, that's why." Trump has denied that it is a racist term. Critics alleged the President did so to deflect blame from his own administration's preparation failures. Trump subsequently decided to stop calling COVID-19 the Chinese Virus.
* March 17 - "The Chinese Communist Party has always been adept at lying to cover their murders. What's remarkable here is the US Democrats and their conjugal media repeating CCP propaganda because they hate Trump more than they love America. The Wuhan virus has exposed them."
* March 17 - Multiple Tweets claiming there is "intentional media panic." He follows with - "Saying the intentional media panic doesn't exist is dishonest. Saying everything in this crisis transpires because of intentional media panic is also dishonest."
* March 17 - Tweets a conspiracy theory that implies economist David Rothschild is a member of the European Rothschild family calling him, "an inbred elitist sphincter whose family craves control. That's one reason why he constantly lies about President Trump." Rothschild told CNN that he is not related to the European banking family, which is frequently the target of anti-Semitic conspiracies.
* March 18 - "Double down on #ChineseVirus. Leftists lost the true meaning of 'racism' long ago. And polls show they've beaten this dead horse so badly that GOP, independent, and soft Dem voters ignore them." He adds - "Nobody should let Democrats and their conjugal media popularize Chinese Communist Party talking points. Democrats + Media = CCP."
* March 18 - Tweeting after a reporter asks Trump why he calls it the "Chinese Virus" - "And they wonder why many consider them now the enemy of the people. Carrying water for the Chinese Communist Party is reason enough."
* March 20 - Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut had Tweeted complaints about how long it would take to receive an order of PPE facemasks, blaming the Trump administration. Murphy cited a February 5 Tweet he sent after a Congress briefing saying the Trump administration was not taking COVID-19 "seriously enough." - Caputo Tweeted to Senator Murphy: "Try to support America until this is over. Even you can do it."
* March 20 - Caputo cited a report from Fox News to claim Washington was flattening the pandemic curve and a Twitter user asked for a link to the information. Caputo replied: "I know you want millions to die so your addled candidate can stumble into the White House but it looks like you might be disappointed. How sad for you."
* March 20 - At the White House news briefing NBC News reporter Peter Alexander first asked Trump if he was giving Americans "false hope" by promoting unproven drugs against COVID-19. Then Alexander asked Trump what he had to say to Americans who were scared of the virus. President Trump excoriated Alexander on the spot. Caputo criticized the media for defending Alexander, Tweeting: "...the media is showing their asses to the world again, wringing their hands lover a hack reporter's treatment." When a Tweet responded that Alexander asked a legitimate question, Caputo shot back: "Listen to his entire interaction including his first comment/question. Also: this guy has been a dick for awhile."
* March 20 - In an exchange on the Hollywood elite: "They understand the Chinese authorities caused this global crisis, but they hate Pres Trumpmore than they love America. Anyone who once doubted that now knows its true."
* March 21 - Caputo sends a Tweet that implies MSNBC host Joe Scarborough is committing treason: "300M? That's just foolish. As our nation is in crisis you're working hard to make the situation worse. There's a word for that. Do you know it? It rhymes with sedition." Scarborough had Tweeted about a lack of testing for 300 million Americans.
**** A note from BND - As of last night, only 4.5 million people of the 331+ million in the US had been tested for COVID-19 - That's 1.47% of the entire population here.) ****
Scarborough told CNN in an e-mail," I'm more interested in what the assistant Secretary does in the future than what he may have Tweeted about me in the past. We're facing difficult times ahead and I am hopeful that the president's entire team will simply follow the lead of Dr. Fauci and Dr. Birx and keep America's seniors safe."
* March 21 - Caputo Tweets at General Michael Hayden, former CIA and NSA director for George W. Bush: "You are corrupt garbage, Hayden. Spying on Americans is insidious and illegal, but you normalized it. Now you defend China after they unleashed a global pandemic. You can fuck right off. Step aside and let normal Americans do the right thing. Your time is gone."
Hayden had called Richard Grenell, the acting DNI director, an "idiot" after Grenell Tweeted: "The one who started the fire should never be praised for acting like a firefighter later" in reference to China's role in the COVID-19 pandemic.
General Hayden told CNN in an e-mail,"Michael Caputo fits right in to this administration. He is a typical Trump thug. By the way, I never replied to his Tweet but this now seems like the appropriate time to point out that he will not be a 'normal American' doing the right thing in any position in this administration."
* March 22 - Caputo Tweets that Democrats are intentionally destroying the economy during the debate over the economic stimulus package after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the House would introduce its own COVID-19 bill. "Power. It's the Democrats' oxygen, and they'll destroy Americans for it."
Caputo had said that Democrats have a goal of "massive deaths" and "economic meltdown" to win the November elections, "Now you see: Democrats need massive deaths and economic meltdown to win in November. With this House action, they get closer to their goal and they think they can cover their flank with 'argle bargle corporations get rich!' Normal Americans see this and will punish them."
Caputo follows up: "I'm serious. The Dem strategy for 2020 victory requires that @realDonaldTrump fail in his fight against the Chinese virus. Failure is measured in deaths and economic collapse. The only questions to ask a Dem are how many Americans must die, how many families must be destroyed?"
* March 22 - Caputo quote Tweets a user, adding he is "right you know" to say Democrats hope no treatment for COVID-19 works. "They are literally cheering on the deaths of Americans and the destruction of our economy. They would rather see people die than see Trump successfully navigate this disaster."
"How many Americans must die to feed Democrat powerlust? 100K? 1M? More??" Caputo added, "How much economic destruction s the Democrat goal? 100% unemployment?"
* March 23 - Caputo Tweets a picture of Senate Minority Leader Chuch SChumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the debate over the economic stimulus package, "The Democrats have one motivation for holding Americans hostage in a global crisis: HATE."
* March 27 - Caputo reTweets a picture of a smiling George Soros with the caption,"The real virus! [3 skull and Crossbones emojis] behind everything....."
* March 28 - Caputo Tweets: "This is how mentally ill Trump haters are in this crisis" in reply to a Tweet that says Trump supporters will "ignore scientific and medical experts" and "urge millions to die for the glory of capitalism."
* March 28 - Caputo quote Tweets MSNBC's Chris Hayes, who noted no other country on Earth was doing a worse job handling the crisis, with "Who knew @chrishayes is Chinese?"
* March 29 - Caputo Tweets that Vice President Joe Biden is an "empty puppet" and Ron Klain, the former Ebola tzar in the Obama administration, is a "puppeteer" for the "CCP [Chinese Communist Party] virus", writing, "Don't you see it? Let me help you. Biden has degraded into empty puppet. On the CCP virus, Ron Klain is the puppeteer. You knock out Gepetto, Pinocchio can't dance. How does 'turd' know so much more than you?"
* March 31 - Caputo ReTweets : "... the Left hate normal Americans and they want us dead and replaced. Act as if they mean it, because they do."
* April 1 - Caputo called Joe Scarborough, MSNBC, and the rest of the media "completely full of shit."
Two weeks later, Michael Caputo was appointed to his position as Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services.
*** A note from BND - I cringed each time I typed "Democrat" in this man's Tweets. A person may be a Democrat, but the political group is the Democratic Party. (I am unabashedly a Democrat.)
In 1955, Leonard Hall a former Republican National Chairman, began referring to the 'Democrat' rather than the 'Democratic' party, a habit begun by Thomas E. Dewey. Hall dropped the 'ic,' he said, because 'I think their claims that they represent the great mass of the people, and we don't, is just a lot of bunk.'
The term "Democrat Senator" was an orchestrated attempt by Republican Newt Gingrich in the 1990s to use a subtle negative response to any "Democrat candidate." It's almost a litmus test for right-wingedness, Listen to the Limbaughs and other liberal-haters (Caputo and Trump included), and they always say "Democrat party" and "Democrat politician" whereas more neutral people or moderate Republicans say the more natural "Democratic." ***
"New HHS Spokesman Made Racist Comments About Chinese People in Now-Deleted Tweets
The new spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services in a series of now-deleted Tweets made racist and derogatory remarks about Chinese people, said Democrats wanted COVID-19 to kill millions of people and accused the media of intentionally creating panic around the pandemic to hurt President Donald Trump. Michael Caputo, a long-time New York Republican political operative who worked on Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, was appointed last week as Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at HHS, a prominent communications role at the department which serves a central role in the federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Caputo, a prolific user who often Tweeted insults and profanity, recently erased nearly his entire Twitter history from before April 12, 2020. CNN's KFile used the Internet Archive's Way Back Machine to review more than 1300 deleted Tweets and reTweets from late February to early April, many of which were regarding the rapidly spreading COVID-19 virus. While he occasionally weighed in with praise for public officials or more straightforward observations, Tweets from this period are also littered with conspiracy theories and controversial language to go after perceived critics of the Trump administration.
In a series of Tweets on March 12, Caputo responded to a baseless conspiracy theory that the United States brought COVID-19 to Wuhan, China, by Tweeting that "millions of Chinese suck the blood out of rabid bats as an appetizer and eat the ass out of anteaters." He followed up at another user, "Don't you have a bat to eat?" and Tweeted at another user, "You're very convincing, Wang."
After publication, Caputo responded to CNN's request for comment by saying that reporting on his past Tweets is "fair game, dude. I don't care. It doesn't matter to me at all." He claimed that he deletes his Tweets "every month and I do it because it drives people mad." He Added "when you Tweet in spirited fashion, KFile is going to have them. I've known that all my days. So I don't mind what you've done." Caputo defended his past Twitter behavior saying he was "a defender of the President" Tweeting in a "spirited manner" that included calling out reporters, but he said he's "now a servant of the American people and some might be disappointed, but my Tweets will be different."
Spokespeople for HHS did not respond to requests for a comment. A spokesperson for the White House also declined to comment.
Caputo also used his Twitter account to aggressively attack Democrats and the media. In March, he referred to one White House reporter as "a dick" after that reporter had a heated exchange with the President. He said many Americans viewed reporters as "the enemy of the people" for "carrying water for the Chinese Communist Party." He implies that MSNBC host Joe Scarborough was guilty of sedition.
On March 8, he said a Democrat may try to inflict hundreds of thousands of American deaths from COVID-19, creating a hypothetical scenario comparable to James Hodgkinson, the anti-Trump man who shot House Majority Whip Representative Steve Scalise and four others during a Republican congressional baseball game practice in 2017. "Coronavirus is the Democrats' new Russia, their new Ukraine. And nobody will believe them except their zombies. But know this: The Dems' strategy to defeat @realDonaldTrump requires 100s of thousands of American deaths. Will one of their nutjobs make it happen, a la Hodgkinson?"
That same day, Caputo reTweeted conservative actor Nick Searcy saying, "Democrats are pulling for the virus to kill a lot of people." In other Tweets from March, Caputo claimed the media created "intentional" panic created around the outbreak, saying it was "orchestrated by soulless Trump critics who seize every crisis as an opportunity to stop him."
Caputo is a friend of political operative and Trump associate Roger Stone, leading a campaign to have Stone pardoned after he was found guilty of lying to Congress, obstructing a congressional inquiry, and witness tampering after Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation brought charges against him. He was sentenced to 40 months in prison in February.
Caputo was also interviewed by Mueller prosecutors and testified before Congress, and adamantly denied there was collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. Caputo resigned from the 2016 Trump campaign after he Tweeted "Ding Dong the witch is dead" following the news that its campaign manager Corey Lewandowski had been fired.
Here are some of Caputo's deleted Tweets pertaining to the unfolding health crisis in the United States:
* February 28 - "Bottom line, a lot of Americans have to get sick and die for coronavirus to tank the Trump economy. The Democrats' only hope for 2020 victory is a sunk economy. They're talking it down right now. But their strategy only works if a lot of Americans get sick and die."
* March 8 - "Coronavirus is the Democrats' new Russia, their new Ukraine. And nobody will believe them except their zombies. But know this: The Dems' strategy to defeat @realDonaldTrump requires 100s of thousands of American deaths. Will one of their nutjobs make it happen, a la Hodgkinson?"
* March 8 - reTweet from conservative actor Nick Searcy: "Democrats are pulling for the virus to kill a lot of people."
* March 8 - Tweets a screenshot of a Washington Post story, 'How the Trump Administration Lost Control of the Coronavirus Crisis.' "The Get Trump Media has shifted gears again: from the Russia Hoax to the Ukraine hoax to this. REMEMBER: Coronavirus is serious. The media is not."
* March 11 - Tweet from a chain on testing shortages - "A lot of the panic is orchestrated by soulless Trump critics who seize every crisis as an opportunity to stop him. And fail." Caput DID acknowledge that lack o f testing was an issue.
* March 11 - "For the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to work, 100,000+ Americans have to die. For the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to work, you have to believe the media. Media literacy is more vital now than ever. Question everything - smell the BS - start by doubting anonymous sources." Follow up Tweet: "There must be a national pandemic tragedy for the Democrats to win. They're counting on it now."
* March 12 - Tweet in response to baseless conspiracy theory that US brought COVID-19 to Wuhan that - "Sure, millions of Chinese suck the blood out of rabid bats as an appetizer and eat the ass out of anteaters but some foreigner snuck in a bottle of the good stuff. That's it." He follows up with - "Don't you have a bat to eat?" Then Tweets to another user - "You're very convincing, Wang."
* March 13 - Tweets that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is an "asshat."
* March 14 - "100s of thousands must die and the US economy must collapse for the Democrat 2020 victory strategy to succeed. They're getting so excited for the carnage. Sick people." He follows up - "Of course he has" - response to Trump being proactive. "This Democrat strategy, echoed by their conjugal media, will fail. Hoping your country fails and hundreds of thousands die so you can gain power is a sick and twisted strategy. America will punish them."
* March 14 - "Taking down names of progs who pick out of context phrases from Administration statements so they can 'LOL' for resistance cred while Washington deals with a pandemic. These are the biggest assholes. Hugest shitbags. Gargantuan sphincters."
* March 15 - Tweets in reference to a conspiracy theory about George Soros, prominent philanthropist and Democratic donor - "Are you kidding? Soros's political agenda REQUIRES a pandemic." Soros is the subject of numerous anti-Semitic conspiracy theories fueled by extremists, and in 2018 a pipe bomb was sent to his home in New York state.
* March 15 - "Wow. I started out feeling badly for you. At least now we know the Wuhan Virus doesn't have any lingering effects on douchebags." This was a Tweet to Daniel Goldman, a lawyer for House Democrats during Trump's Impeachment. Goldman had tested positive for COVID-19, and had Tweeted: "One final note: I may be the first you know who tested positive, but I won't be the last. Let's take care of each other, listen to the experts and the cities, states, and corporations who are taking the lead in the absence of the fed Government, and get through this together. END."
* March 16 - In response to a Tweet noting the Dow Jones Industrial Average had lost all its gains since Trump took office - "The Democrat celebration of the death and destruction will be held soon."
* March 17 - Tweets "#ChineseVirus" 20 times in a row. President Trump began calling COVID-19 the "Chinese virus" in March. Trump claimed he did so to counter conspiracy theories from the Chinese media and an official that the US had brought the virus to Wuhan. Trump claimed he also did it because it was "accurate... it comes from China, that's why." Trump has denied that it is a racist term. Critics alleged the President did so to deflect blame from his own administration's preparation failures. Trump subsequently decided to stop calling COVID-19 the Chinese Virus.
* March 17 - "The Chinese Communist Party has always been adept at lying to cover their murders. What's remarkable here is the US Democrats and their conjugal media repeating CCP propaganda because they hate Trump more than they love America. The Wuhan virus has exposed them."
* March 17 - Multiple Tweets claiming there is "intentional media panic." He follows with - "Saying the intentional media panic doesn't exist is dishonest. Saying everything in this crisis transpires because of intentional media panic is also dishonest."
* March 17 - Tweets a conspiracy theory that implies economist David Rothschild is a member of the European Rothschild family calling him, "an inbred elitist sphincter whose family craves control. That's one reason why he constantly lies about President Trump." Rothschild told CNN that he is not related to the European banking family, which is frequently the target of anti-Semitic conspiracies.
* March 18 - "Double down on #ChineseVirus. Leftists lost the true meaning of 'racism' long ago. And polls show they've beaten this dead horse so badly that GOP, independent, and soft Dem voters ignore them." He adds - "Nobody should let Democrats and their conjugal media popularize Chinese Communist Party talking points. Democrats + Media = CCP."
* March 18 - Tweeting after a reporter asks Trump why he calls it the "Chinese Virus" - "And they wonder why many consider them now the enemy of the people. Carrying water for the Chinese Communist Party is reason enough."
* March 20 - Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut had Tweeted complaints about how long it would take to receive an order of PPE facemasks, blaming the Trump administration. Murphy cited a February 5 Tweet he sent after a Congress briefing saying the Trump administration was not taking COVID-19 "seriously enough." - Caputo Tweeted to Senator Murphy: "Try to support America until this is over. Even you can do it."
* March 20 - Caputo cited a report from Fox News to claim Washington was flattening the pandemic curve and a Twitter user asked for a link to the information. Caputo replied: "I know you want millions to die so your addled candidate can stumble into the White House but it looks like you might be disappointed. How sad for you."
* March 20 - At the White House news briefing NBC News reporter Peter Alexander first asked Trump if he was giving Americans "false hope" by promoting unproven drugs against COVID-19. Then Alexander asked Trump what he had to say to Americans who were scared of the virus. President Trump excoriated Alexander on the spot. Caputo criticized the media for defending Alexander, Tweeting: "...the media is showing their asses to the world again, wringing their hands lover a hack reporter's treatment." When a Tweet responded that Alexander asked a legitimate question, Caputo shot back: "Listen to his entire interaction including his first comment/question. Also: this guy has been a dick for awhile."
* March 20 - In an exchange on the Hollywood elite: "They understand the Chinese authorities caused this global crisis, but they hate Pres Trumpmore than they love America. Anyone who once doubted that now knows its true."
* March 21 - Caputo sends a Tweet that implies MSNBC host Joe Scarborough is committing treason: "300M? That's just foolish. As our nation is in crisis you're working hard to make the situation worse. There's a word for that. Do you know it? It rhymes with sedition." Scarborough had Tweeted about a lack of testing for 300 million Americans.
**** A note from BND - As of last night, only 4.5 million people of the 331+ million in the US had been tested for COVID-19 - That's 1.47% of the entire population here.) ****
Scarborough told CNN in an e-mail," I'm more interested in what the assistant Secretary does in the future than what he may have Tweeted about me in the past. We're facing difficult times ahead and I am hopeful that the president's entire team will simply follow the lead of Dr. Fauci and Dr. Birx and keep America's seniors safe."
* March 21 - Caputo Tweets at General Michael Hayden, former CIA and NSA director for George W. Bush: "You are corrupt garbage, Hayden. Spying on Americans is insidious and illegal, but you normalized it. Now you defend China after they unleashed a global pandemic. You can fuck right off. Step aside and let normal Americans do the right thing. Your time is gone."
Hayden had called Richard Grenell, the acting DNI director, an "idiot" after Grenell Tweeted: "The one who started the fire should never be praised for acting like a firefighter later" in reference to China's role in the COVID-19 pandemic.
General Hayden told CNN in an e-mail,"Michael Caputo fits right in to this administration. He is a typical Trump thug. By the way, I never replied to his Tweet but this now seems like the appropriate time to point out that he will not be a 'normal American' doing the right thing in any position in this administration."
* March 22 - Caputo Tweets that Democrats are intentionally destroying the economy during the debate over the economic stimulus package after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the House would introduce its own COVID-19 bill. "Power. It's the Democrats' oxygen, and they'll destroy Americans for it."
Caputo had said that Democrats have a goal of "massive deaths" and "economic meltdown" to win the November elections, "Now you see: Democrats need massive deaths and economic meltdown to win in November. With this House action, they get closer to their goal and they think they can cover their flank with 'argle bargle corporations get rich!' Normal Americans see this and will punish them."
Caputo follows up: "I'm serious. The Dem strategy for 2020 victory requires that @realDonaldTrump fail in his fight against the Chinese virus. Failure is measured in deaths and economic collapse. The only questions to ask a Dem are how many Americans must die, how many families must be destroyed?"
* March 22 - Caputo quote Tweets a user, adding he is "right you know" to say Democrats hope no treatment for COVID-19 works. "They are literally cheering on the deaths of Americans and the destruction of our economy. They would rather see people die than see Trump successfully navigate this disaster."
"How many Americans must die to feed Democrat powerlust? 100K? 1M? More??" Caputo added, "How much economic destruction s the Democrat goal? 100% unemployment?"
* March 23 - Caputo Tweets a picture of Senate Minority Leader Chuch SChumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during the debate over the economic stimulus package, "The Democrats have one motivation for holding Americans hostage in a global crisis: HATE."
* March 27 - Caputo reTweets a picture of a smiling George Soros with the caption,"The real virus! [3 skull and Crossbones emojis] behind everything....."
* March 28 - Caputo Tweets: "This is how mentally ill Trump haters are in this crisis" in reply to a Tweet that says Trump supporters will "ignore scientific and medical experts" and "urge millions to die for the glory of capitalism."
* March 28 - Caputo quote Tweets MSNBC's Chris Hayes, who noted no other country on Earth was doing a worse job handling the crisis, with "Who knew @chrishayes is Chinese?"
* March 29 - Caputo Tweets that Vice President Joe Biden is an "empty puppet" and Ron Klain, the former Ebola tzar in the Obama administration, is a "puppeteer" for the "CCP [Chinese Communist Party] virus", writing, "Don't you see it? Let me help you. Biden has degraded into empty puppet. On the CCP virus, Ron Klain is the puppeteer. You knock out Gepetto, Pinocchio can't dance. How does 'turd' know so much more than you?"
* March 31 - Caputo ReTweets : "... the Left hate normal Americans and they want us dead and replaced. Act as if they mean it, because they do."
* April 1 - Caputo called Joe Scarborough, MSNBC, and the rest of the media "completely full of shit."
Two weeks later, Michael Caputo was appointed to his position as Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services.
*** A note from BND - I cringed each time I typed "Democrat" in this man's Tweets. A person may be a Democrat, but the political group is the Democratic Party. (I am unabashedly a Democrat.)
In 1955, Leonard Hall a former Republican National Chairman, began referring to the 'Democrat' rather than the 'Democratic' party, a habit begun by Thomas E. Dewey. Hall dropped the 'ic,' he said, because 'I think their claims that they represent the great mass of the people, and we don't, is just a lot of bunk.'
The term "Democrat Senator" was an orchestrated attempt by Republican Newt Gingrich in the 1990s to use a subtle negative response to any "Democrat candidate." It's almost a litmus test for right-wingedness, Listen to the Limbaughs and other liberal-haters (Caputo and Trump included), and they always say "Democrat party" and "Democrat politician" whereas more neutral people or moderate Republicans say the more natural "Democratic." ***
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