Donald Trump is leaving states high and dry, and it's a sign his coronavirus response is getting worse

• Trump is leaving states to do the heavy lifting in the fight against coronavirus, while denying them funding to do so.
• I shouldn't have to say how ridiculous that is, but here we are.
• The decision proves that Trump's coronavirus response is getting even worse.
• This is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed are those of the author.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

To bring their populations out of what is essentially hiding from the coronavirus, hard hit states will need to ramp up testing, establish contact tracing, implement measures like temperature checks in public spaces, and continue to manage their stockpiles of emergency supplies to fight the coronavirus. All of this while trying to continue the functions of their state as normally as possible.

And — at least this week — it seems they will have to do most of this without the aid of the federal government. In Congress, Republicans want to send emergency funds to small businesses but are balking at including money to state governments and hospitals in their current bill — as if states and hospitals weren't going to be living in a constant state of emergency until a coronavirus vaccine is distributed widely.

From the White House, President Donald Trump is only adding a dose of malice to this misery.

He's fomenting protests against lockdowns by calling for them to end on Twitter. He's bashing governors for not stockpiling supplies before the crisis one day, and saying he's partners with them the next. His administration is still competing against the states for supplies. In short, his response to this crisis is getting worse, his grasp on the reality of its magnitude more tenuous.

One day he says he has absolute authority over the states (he doesn't), the next he seems overwhelmed, so he washes his hands of the situation and leaves it all to governors (he need to give some help from the federal government unless he wants this crisis to drag on longer).

On Friday New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, whose disdain for the President is barely veiled, decided to engage in a bit of catharsis. He acknowledged that his state can't fight the coronavirus without help from the federal government. Many of the supplies are in China, and as governor he's not practiced in international relations or supply chains. Scaling testing will be an effort he compared to sending a man to the moon.

Meanwhile the president, Cuomo said looking directly at the camera, is at the White House watching television. Specifically, Cuomo deduced, his press conference.

Previously, Trump had complained that states like New York said they would need tens of thousands of ventilators and other supplies at the apex of the pandemic when they appear to have needed less at the apex of the pandemic in those areas. Cuomo responded to that at his press conference, noting that his state's projections about the outbreak and the needed capacity was based on data from the federal government, from the Center for Disease Control.

"Our only mistake was believing your numbers," he said. "New York state relying on what you said was a a mistake and we won't make that mistake again."

All of this is to say that while the federal government may have some guidelines for how states open up, it is not doing anything to ease that transition. It is not creating a national testing system — at least not yet — which is the key to giving people the confidence to resume business and travel as normal, especially in cities like New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Trump wants to get the economy going, but he's leaving its engines to rot.

"The president doesn't want to help on testing," Cuomo said. "He said 11 times 'I don't want to get involved in testing. It's too complicated it's too hard.' I know it's complicated and it's hard. That's why I need you to help!... He wants to say 'I did enough.' None of us have done enough, we haven't because it's not over."

It is crucial that the government learn how to guide transition, because this country will be in a constant state of transition — at least, in terms of the economy — until this pandemic is over.

Once the states get out of lockdown, they'll have to scale a socially-distanced economy. They may have to transition from a socially-distanced economy to one in lockdown again. Finally, we'll have to make the final transition from a world of people who work on contact tracing and coronavirus tests, to one of people who can sell concessions at Knicks games again or be bartenders at airports again.

States will be on the front lines of all of this. They have no choice. The president meanwhile, it seems, is opting out in the early innings of this crisis. It's too hard, and Donald Trump doesn't do hard.

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