Ugly new turn in Donald Trump’s decision to turn National Guard loose on DC protesters
Donald Trump was already facing an ugly scandal for turning the National Guard and other personnel loose on peaceful protesters in Washington DC. After a series of ugly and scandalous incidents around the district, Trump’s own Secretary of Defense sent the troops home while Trump was visiting Maine. Now it turns out there’s an ugly aftershock coming.
There is now a confirmed coronavirus outbreak within the Washington DC National Guard, according to the local ABC News affiliate in Washington DC. It’s not yet being revealed how many personnel have tested positive, which parts of DC they were patrolling, or which protest incidents they may have been involved in. It’s also not clear if the protesters infected the guardsmen, or if it was the other way around. But it is clear that Trump’s decision to line the streets of DC with needless troops has resulted in a worsening viral outbreak.
This is before you get to the part where Donald Trump and Bill Barr have brought mysterious law enforcement personnel to Washington DC from around the nation, at least some of whom came from regions where coronavirus cases are still going up in number. This is only going to get uglier.
Bill Palmer is the publisher of the political news outlet Palmer Report