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I don't understand how you have identified this as the problem. Sure, states haven't coordinated on lockdowns, testing, or mask purchasing. But it's not because

I don't understand how you have identified this as the problem. Sure, states haven't coordinated on lockdowns, testing, or mask purchasing. But it's not because they're struggling against the federal government, it's because there's no official policy to coordinate with. Seems to me like our main difficulty deviating from normal is the fact that a 20% decrease in demand kills off 10% of businesses within weeks and causes 20% of people to instantly get behind on their rent. There's no slack in the system.

lisper 7y ago
> it's not because they're struggling against the federal government Actually, it is: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/495519-maryland-governor-says-coronavirus-tests-acquired-from-south-korea-under https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/495519-maryland-gov... “The National Guard and the State Police are both guarding these tests at an undisclosed location [because] the federal government seems to be interrupting supplies that are being sent elsewhere in the nation, and so I wanted to make sure that we received what we ordered,” [Illinois Gov. J.B.] Pritzker told reporters at an April 15 press conference.
- tenpies 7y ago
  Do you think there is even a chance that a prominent Democrat governor in a prominently Democrat state might be exaggerating for the sake of making the other party look bad? I mean I can't help but think back to the Puerto Rico days when the Democrats were complaining about a complete lack of aid, meanwhile there were warehouses filled with aid and photos of aid already on site.
  - nkrisc 7y ago
    Larry Hogan, Maryland's Republican governor, has taken similar steps.
  - wegs 7y ago
    States are reacting to confiscations which have already happened. See Massachusetts' first order of medical supplies of China. Second order was flow in on a private jet protected by the Massachusetts National Guard. No one knows what happens to the supplies after seizure. There are reports that some get resold by private Trump-affiliated companies. Government claims to be redistributing them to those most in need. There are no audit trails. It's a mess.
  - lisper 7y ago
    Of course there's a chance. It's possible that Trump is correct and there is a vast conspiracy to make him look bad when in fact he is exactly what he says he is: a very stable genius who is doing a great job. There's also a chance that the earth is flat. I'll give comparable odds for both.
- prostheticvamp 7y ago
  I mean... your example is /true/, but I’m hard pressed to think of a second one. One example isn’t a trend.
  - lisper 7y ago
    https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-04-07/hospitals-washington-seize-coronavirus-supplies https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-04-07/hospitals-... "... the federal government is quietly seizing orders, leaving medical providers across the country in the dark about where the material is going and how they can get what they need to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Hospital and clinic officials in seven states described the seizures in interviews over the past week." [Emphasis added] Is that enough of a trend for you?
    - prostheticvamp 6y ago
      Sorry, I was unclear. I meant that aside from the conflict over PPE - which has happened more than once - I am not aware of instances of the state and federal government working against one another.
      - lisper 6y ago
        https://twitter.com/warmh20penguin/status/1245758492528410624 https://twitter.com/warmh20penguin/status/124575849252841062...
ComputerGuru 7y ago
It’s more nuanced than that. As Gov Pritzker made public, states are having to bid against one another for PPE and driving up prices significantly because it’s every man (or woman) for themselves. He publicly castigated the federal government for not centralizing the acquisition of resources (which isn’t the same as footing the bill as they can allocate the materials (acquired at whatever better cost they can negotiate as a single buyer then) to states based off of population or need, ands charge them for them if they like.
- steve19 7y ago
  If the feds did centralize acquisition and distribution all hell would break loose. Every allocation would be disputed and every allocation would be blamed on partisan allegiances. The solution would be the states deciding among themselves who should get what, with the richer states being OK with getting less than they would otherwise get.
henrikschroder 7y ago
Actually, there are two interstate pacts doing just that, coordinating their covid-19 response because they think the federal government is useless. There's the Western States Pact (CA, OR, WA, NV, CO), and NY just announced an eastern states consortium (NY, NJ, MA, CT, PA, RI, DE). Add to the fact that several states have had to take drastic measures like calling in their national guard to protect their own PPE shipments from being seized by federal agents, and it's hard not to argue that several states are in fact struggling against the federal government in a completely unprecedented way.
- agensaequivocum 7y ago
  This is how things are supposed to work. The federal government is give very specific enumerated powers per the constitution. The founder are would be appalled by the size and scope of the federal government. One thing they did not account for was lack of loyalty people have towards their own state.
  - wegs 7y ago
    States are supposed to be using national guards to protect things they buy from seizure by the federal government? Can you explain why you believe that?
    - agensaequivocum 7y ago
      The state militias are for stopping possible encroachments by the federal government. No the feds should not be seizing stuff. The state are supposed to check the fed, and the people check the state.
- BurningFrog 7y ago
  I have a hard time seeing what these pacts accomplish. What's gained by coordinating Covid response in Spokane and Fresno?
  - thomaslord 6y ago
mehrdadn 7y ago
The federal government has been actively confiscating PPE shipments and doing who-knows-what with them. There were multiple stories about this, though they didn't grab many headlines. It's not even just competition, it's more like federal spite, with focus on blue states.

lisper 7y ago

> it's not because they're struggling against the federal government Actually, it is: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/495519-maryland-governor-says-coronavirus-tests-acquired-from-south-korea-under https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/495519-maryland-gov... “The National Guard and the State Police are both guarding these tests at an undisclosed location [because] the federal government seems to be interrupting supplies that are being sent elsewhere in the nation, and so I wanted to make sure that we received what we ordered,” [Illinois Gov. J.B.] Pritzker told reporters at an April 15 press conference.

tenpies 7y ago
Do you think there is even a chance that a prominent Democrat governor in a prominently Democrat state might be exaggerating for the sake of making the other party look bad? I mean I can't help but think back to the Puerto Rico days when the Democrats were complaining about a complete lack of aid, meanwhile there were warehouses filled with aid and photos of aid already on site.
- nkrisc 7y ago
  Larry Hogan, Maryland's Republican governor, has taken similar steps.
- wegs 7y ago
  States are reacting to confiscations which have already happened. See Massachusetts' first order of medical supplies of China. Second order was flow in on a private jet protected by the Massachusetts National Guard. No one knows what happens to the supplies after seizure. There are reports that some get resold by private Trump-affiliated companies. Government claims to be redistributing them to those most in need. There are no audit trails. It's a mess.
- lisper 7y ago
  Of course there's a chance. It's possible that Trump is correct and there is a vast conspiracy to make him look bad when in fact he is exactly what he says he is: a very stable genius who is doing a great job. There's also a chance that the earth is flat. I'll give comparable odds for both.
prostheticvamp 7y ago
I mean... your example is /true/, but I’m hard pressed to think of a second one. One example isn’t a trend.
- lisper 7y ago
  https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-04-07/hospitals-washington-seize-coronavirus-supplies https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-04-07/hospitals-... "... the federal government is quietly seizing orders, leaving medical providers across the country in the dark about where the material is going and how they can get what they need to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Hospital and clinic officials in seven states described the seizures in interviews over the past week." [Emphasis added] Is that enough of a trend for you?
  - prostheticvamp 6y ago
    Sorry, I was unclear. I meant that aside from the conflict over PPE - which has happened more than once - I am not aware of instances of the state and federal government working against one another.
    - lisper 6y ago
      https://twitter.com/warmh20penguin/status/1245758492528410624 https://twitter.com/warmh20penguin/status/124575849252841062...

ComputerGuru 7y ago

It’s more nuanced than that. As Gov Pritzker made public, states are having to bid against one another for PPE and driving up prices significantly because it’s every man (or woman) for themselves. He publicly castigated the federal government for not centralizing the acquisition of resources (which isn’t the same as footing the bill as they can allocate the materials (acquired at whatever better cost they can negotiate as a single buyer then) to states based off of population or need, ands charge them for them if they like.

steve19 7y ago
If the feds did centralize acquisition and distribution all hell would break loose. Every allocation would be disputed and every allocation would be blamed on partisan allegiances. The solution would be the states deciding among themselves who should get what, with the richer states being OK with getting less than they would otherwise get.

henrikschroder 7y ago

Actually, there are two interstate pacts doing just that, coordinating their covid-19 response because they think the federal government is useless. There's the Western States Pact (CA, OR, WA, NV, CO), and NY just announced an eastern states consortium (NY, NJ, MA, CT, PA, RI, DE). Add to the fact that several states have had to take drastic measures like calling in their national guard to protect their own PPE shipments from being seized by federal agents, and it's hard not to argue that several states are in fact struggling against the federal government in a completely unprecedented way.

agensaequivocum 7y ago
This is how things are supposed to work. The federal government is give very specific enumerated powers per the constitution. The founder are would be appalled by the size and scope of the federal government. One thing they did not account for was lack of loyalty people have towards their own state.
- wegs 7y ago
  States are supposed to be using national guards to protect things they buy from seizure by the federal government? Can you explain why you believe that?
  - agensaequivocum 7y ago
    The state militias are for stopping possible encroachments by the federal government. No the feds should not be seizing stuff. The state are supposed to check the fed, and the people check the state.
BurningFrog 7y ago
I have a hard time seeing what these pacts accomplish. What's gained by coordinating Covid response in Spokane and Fresno?
- thomaslord 6y ago

mehrdadn 7y ago

The federal government has been actively confiscating PPE shipments and doing who-knows-what with them. There were multiple stories about this, though they didn't grab many headlines. It's not even just competition, it's more like federal spite, with focus on blue states.