Meanwhile Trump and his followers were out there making racist comments and saber-rattling at China. That astoundingly boneheaded diplomatic failure unnecessar

Meanwhile Trump and his followers were out there making racist comments and saber-rattling at China. That astoundingly boneheaded diplomatic failure unnecessarily ratcheted international tensions to the point where, no, we absolutely were not able to simultaneously research the cause and also collaborate on mitigating the impact of the virus. That diplomatic tension was repeatedly highlighted as a specific reason that investigation would not be tenable. If you're going to talk about the erosion of trust, be honest and look at how the conspiracy theorists have been contributing to that erosion.