TRUMP: Rise up, support him

Regarding a letter from Sandra Boynton entitled, “Trump: Rise up against him,” Boynton displays her ignorance of what a COVID-19 mortality rate is. She lists a number of countries along with their total number of deaths. These are not mortality rates.

One mortality rate is the number of deaths per 100K of the population. The U.S. is No. 11 with fewer deaths per 100K than San Morino, Belgium, U.K., Andorra, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Peru, Chile and France. These are countries with an advanced health care system.

Another mortality rate is deaths per 100K confirmed cases. Here, the U.S. is lower than 14 Western European countries and Canada, all of which have advanced health care systems.

In short, our mortality rates are low in comparison to advanced countries whose reporting of data can generally be trusted. Whether our rates are “very low” depends on the point of view and biases of the reader.

Boynton suggests the reader give to the Lincoln Project and Republicans Against Trump. These are Democrats or Never-Trumpers — no real Republican would ever support either of these groups. Certainly our mortality rates for the virus give no support for such a move.

The U.S. is a federal system of 50 states. The governors have been largely in control of responses to and mitigation of the virus. The president acted quickly early on with travel bans. He has ordered the fastest development of treatments and a vaccine and has been ready to spend whatever that takes. It is unclear what more he could have done or could do right now.

Boynton is merely parroting the Democrat playbook of blame Trump for the virus and the current economy. He is responsible for neither. The economy was at a record height before the Chinese sent us the virus. They are responsible for the virus, not the president.

THOMAS LAWRENCE

Hayden