Letter to the editor: Biden responsible for our recovery

In his column “Is it 1968 all over again, and will the results be the same?” (Aug. 24, TribLive), Gary Franks accuses the Harris-Walz team of lies, half-truths and distortions, which is exactly what he himself did.

Ex-President Trump’s handling of covid was a monumental disaster. He gutted the Centers for Disease Control and left it handicapped to deal with the virus. He overruled public health guidance from infectious disease experts and silenced officials. He politicized wearing masks, getting tested and vaccinated, causing chaos, confusion and division.

He repeatedly lied about the gravity of the situation. His failure to take the coronavirus seriously, and his inadequate response, led to a public health crisis. By June 25, 2020, the U.S., with just 4% of the global population, had 25% of global virus cases and the second-highest death rate per capita in advanced economies. A Columbia University report conservatively estimated that between 130,000 and 210,000 deaths were attributable to the failures of the U.S. government.

This public health crisis led to an economic crisis. While other countries such as Germany had a 0.8% increase in unemployment, we had a 14.7% unemployment rate.

The health of the American people and the economy did not recover until President Biden’s corrective actions became effective. Biden was able to get enough people vaccinated and enough people back to work to allow for a healthy, and indeed a robust, recovery. Thank you, President Biden.

Chris Baldonieri

Latrobe

The writer is chair of Region 5 of the Westmoreland County Democratic Committee.