Quick Notes On trump's Schemes for the 2020 Convention

Given the other things to condemn trump for during this pandemic crisis, ignoring the obvious need to cancel a large gathering of his OWN PARTY is three different levels of stupid, but that's what we should expect anymore. Via Daniel Politi at Slate:

President Donald Trump began Memorial Day with a threat, warning that he was seriously considering moving the Republican National Convention from Charlotte if there are no guarantees that the state will have lifted any restrictions on how many people can gather in closed spaces by late August. In a series of tweets on Monday, Trump said he needed guarantees from the Democratic governor of North Carolina, Roy Cooper, that Republicans would be able to fill Charlotte’s Spectrum Center to capacity during the convention...

Cooper, Trump insisted, must “immediately” give Republicans an answer “as to whether or not the space will be allowed to be fully occupied,” Trump wrote. If he can’t guarantee that then the GOP will have to “reluctantly” another site for the convention, “with all of the jobs and economic development it brings...”

A few points where trump is wrong: Political conventions do not bring a lot of economic development or jobs; It is - even under these risky circumstances where a lot of places have cancelled conventions- difficult to find another large-sized convention facility to move to on short notice, so in some respects trump is bluffing here; and anybody even thinking of showing up at an event with more than ten people - all of whom are coming from 50 states plus territories bringing any variant of coronavirus with them - is basically condemning about two-thirds of fellow attendees with a virus that's gonna wreck their lungs, kidneys, and other major organs.

There's a reason why the comic-cons and library cons and marketing cons are all cancelled or delayed: nobody is stupid enough to host these things right now, no matter how much pressure the CEOs and Republicans are pushing to re-open.

Of course, trump is both projecting and deflecting when making his decisions. Back to Politi:

The president’s tweets also come a few days after the New York Times reported that Trump was open to participating in a smaller convention, although he reportedly often wondered to aides why they couldn’t simply move it to Florida, where the reopening process is moving along more quickly. Trump has also openly wondered whether North Carolina’s Democratic governor would try to hurt Republicans with rules regarding the convention. “It’s got a Democrat governor, so we have to be a little bit careful with that, because they’re playing politics,” Trump told a Washington Examiner columnist earlier this month. “They’re playing politics, as you know, by delaying the openings.”

Cooper has insisted that his decisions regarding COVID-19 restrictions have nothing to do with politics. “A pandemic cannot be political,” Cooper told CNN. “If it is, we lose that ability to work together.”

There are several terrifying aspects at play here. Above all, trump seems to think the pandemic is a partisan hoax meant to embarrass himself and the Republicans who are pushing quick re-openings to re-spark an economy that's nowhere near safe and ready.

Second point, trump's thoughts about Florida is likely not about Orlando or Tampa or Miami's Convention halls - which can handle such events - but likely his Doral resort (trump may say otherwise, but I doubt the heavily Democratic-controlled metros will play ball with him because they'll want the same CDC regulations as North Carolina/Charlotte) so he can make money.

Third point, trump may be accusing the Dems of playing politics but he's the one trying to use this issue to force NC Governor Cooper into speeding up any re-opening schedule to favor trump. Look at how trump is trying to use the threat of "lost jobs and economic opportunity" should the convention move away. That's a stick-no-carrot approach that trump has used before, which doesn't work too often because without that "carrot" Cooper has no reason to submit to trump's whims here.

If anything, should trump and the Republicans try to host ANY kind of gathering while this pandemic is taking place, they are taking a serious risk with not only their health but the health of every resident in Charlotte or elsewhere forced to handle this ill-advised convention.

There are other ways to do this now. Just not with trump's sociopathic ego-stroking need to play to a cheering crowd in front of him.

But this is how trump rolls, isn't it. His ongoing sadistic need to serve his own while everyone else sickens and suffers.

Horrifying stuff, America.

This is not the time for trump's ego to make more of us sick.