Letters

I didn’t want to find myself drawn into a political response to the current letters being written to criticize the administration’s performance on our pandemic.

The finger-pointing by Barbara Weber-Floyd [“How We Got Here,” Letters, April 30] is disappointingly partisan. Ms. Weber-Floyd complains that our difficulty in responding to a unique disease was inadequate because the president reduced the size of government (agencies) and vowed to repeal Obamacare. For Ms. Weber-Floyd, I offer this explanation: That is what he was elected to do!

With regard to the Affordable Care Act, it was unconstitutional from the start, as it required enrollment or you were fined. That it escaped its initial test before the U.S. Supreme Court was only due to Justice John Roberts “interpreting” the fine as a “tax.” It currently is on life support and most likely will be struck down by the court now that the requirement for enrollment has been successfully challenged.

As to the slashing of budgets and power of government agencies, the “Swamp” that Trump wants to drain is the pervasive extent of government regulation of all things.

I doubt you are aware of this, Ms. Weber-Floyd, but agencies were created whole cloth under the executive branch. Most people are surprised to learn that none of them is staffed by elected officials. They exist with the unfettered authority to make policy, implement policy and enforce policy. They are their own judge, jury and executioner.

It is no secret that those like yourself, Ms. Weber-Floyd, believe we are best served by an omnipotent central government and are disappointed if all of our needs are not met by this Leviathan. On the other hand, we who want more direct control of our lives, free of the unending mandates of these bureaucrats, are happy to see any effort to stem the growth of their authority.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is a necessary evil in the scheme of things. But not infallible. Their mishandling of the testing protocol, misunderstanding of the contagiousness and late decision to convince the president of the imminent danger is typical of most bureaucracies.

As the president took control of this challenge, his instincts to share the defense of our country with the private sector and state and local officials has produced an incredibly quick and robust response, of which I am completely satisfied and confident.

I’ll ask the haters to simply ask themselves an honest question: If it weren’t Trump leading this response, would you still be so vicious in your criticism? I think not.

Ed Surgan

Westhampton