As we all know, Democrats and their pet Credentialed Media have been accusing Trump of being an authoritarian for years. They can’t say exactly how he’s being one, especially since he tends to do away with rules and regulations rather than enact them. I guess it’s do to him being mean to Dems and the media? James E. Baker, who served under Clinton, is upset
Why Is Trump So Timid With the Defense Production Act?
Every Marine knows better than to pull a knife in a gunfight. But so far, that appears to be the federal government’s approach to battling Covid-19. The president has “invoked†the Defense Production Act, but the government has not used the full authority of the act. There is a difference between invoking a law and using it, just as there is a difference between talk and action.
Governors and health officials tell us that there is a profound gap between the protective equipment, hospital equipment and testing resources that are needed (and will be needed) and what is available (or in the pipeline). Bill Gates reminds us that we will need to produce millions, perhaps billions, of doses of vaccine in 12 to 18 months. This isn’t a passing crisis; we will need more of everything in two months, six months and maybe years.
Don’t let debate over the details of General Motors’ and Ventec’s honorable effort to build more ventilators hide the bottom line: The federal government has all the authority it needs to close the supply gap, allocate resources among states, and prepare for the production and distribution of the vaccine to come. Until the federal government demonstrates — with statistics, contracts and timelines — that the gap is closed and the vaccine pipeline is ready, we should ask: Why isn’t the government bringing its full arsenal to the fight?
Don’t look at all the those private companies voluntarily changing their production lines to help out distract you from the bottom line (remember how the media belittled and attacked the founder of My Pillow and the company?), which is that Trump Should Be Acting Like A Dictator
The D.P.A.’s authorities go beyond prioritizing contracts and manufacturing supplies. Its allocation authority addresses the problem of states’ competing against one another for scarce resources based on market mechanisms. The federal government can allocate equipment and supplies based on actual need and best public-health practices. The D.P.A.’s industry assessment authority can be used to measure production and distribution capacity, remove blind spots, plan efficiently and recreate a supply chain at home. The federal government can determine now which entities could produce vaccines while it plans for their ethical allocation. The government can then use the D.P.A.’s Title III incentive authorities to issue loans, offer antitrust protection and guarantee purchases, creating a secure market for masks, tests and vaccines.
The minute that the Trump admin starts prioritizing they will be accused of picking and choosing winners and losers, that they are helping out Trump states and not Blue states.
The law is so broad in places that it is sometimes referred to as a “commandeering†authority. Lawyers prefer to say the president would act at the zenith of his authority under the paradigm presented in Justice Jackson’s concurrence in the Supreme Court’s landmark Youngstowncase. But its use is not as extraordinary as some suggest, and it is not commandeering. The Defense Department alone uses the prioritization authority some 300,000 times a year, while the government uses Title III incentives 20 to 30 times per year. Although the allocation authority has not been used since the Cold War, some civilian airliners and freighters remain allocated for the Civil Reserve Air Fleet. Nor does exercise of the prioritization and allocation authority equate to state ownership. Under the act, corporations are paid fair market value for their products. Any actual “commandeering†of production would require just compensation under the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause. Moreover, price controls under the D.P.A. require a joint resolution of Congress signed into law by the president.
Wait, what was that about a joint resolution by Congress? We all know that the minute Trump goes and fully uses DPA the same media will accuse him of going to far and acting like an authoritarian.
State and local authorities are imploring the federal government to use the authority it has to secure our medical supply chain. So far, the administration appears to have responded like a parent doling out candy to a child: one piece at a time. This is an “all hands on deck†moment, not merely to flatten the curve but to leap ahead of the curve. America was once the arsenal of democracy; the D.P.A. can help make us the arsenal of public health.
Wait, government is inefficient? Who knew! But, really, if these state and local administrations are incompetent, perhaps they should resign and let others who aren’t do the job.
I’ve never heard of a commander who complained about having too many tanks or who asked for a few artillery shells and not one too many. It’s high time we fought the virus the American way: with everything we’ve got.
Perhaps Mr. Baker should have a conversation with Mr. Obama, and his VP Joe Biden, about depleting the N95 masks and not replenishing them.
Read: NY Times: Why Is The Guy We Accuse Of Being A Dictator Not Action Like A Dictator? »