Day 1,175: In rewarding purple states with coronavirus supplies, Trump is doling out aid based on voting power
Administration’s policies underscore the dangers of the Electoral College.
Proponents of moving presidential elections to a popular vote have their reasons — predominately that each person has the same voting power no matter where they live — and proponents of the Electoral College have theirs — mainly that it forces candidates to campaign outside exclusively high-density areas.
Frequently, the two sides are split along a partisan divide with Democrats tending to favor a popular vote and Republicans preferring the Electoral College. That has something to do with the fact that Democrats have won four of the past five popular votes for the presidency (Al Gore in 2000, Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012 and Hillary Clinton in 2016), but have only sat a president in two of those terms.
Trump, for his part, has called the Electoral College both a “disaster” and “genius.”
At the moment, Trump is proving how dangerous it is.
With the coronavirus continuing to wreak havoc on the U.S., needed medical supplies are scant. States are competing against one another to get access to life-saving equipment. Ventilators and personal protective equipment in federal stockpiles are being hoarded by the government and doled out under opaque procedures.
The problem is that not all Americans are being treated equally. Trump’s administration appears to be helping states for political gain in the run up to the 2020 election.
For instance, on Wednesday, ignoring their governor’s and Sen. Michael Bennet’s (D-CO) pleas, Trump tweeted that Colorado would be getting 100 ventilators “at the request of Senator Garnder [R-CO].”
Gardner is one of the GOP’s most vulnerable senators up for reelection in 2020. Colorado is also one of the nation’s dozen or so most purple states. After Trump’s tweet, Gardner immediately ran to Fox News for an obligatory you-scratched-my-back-now-I’ll-scratch-yours interview.
“The Governor has been searching for ventilators and FEMA has also been searching for ventilators. I talked to the President last night about the Colorado need for ventilators, and of course, I’m very thankful that he provided that last night,” Gardner said. “We’re going to continue to work with the President for more and continue to meet Colorado’s needs, but I think it’s just a sign that we are fighting for Colorado.”
In Florida, a state Trump desperately needs to hold on to in 2020, they’re getting all the supplies they need too. Yet other states, either out of reach for Trump in 2020 or with a minute number of electors, are being virtually ignored.
At it’s core, it isn’t a true red vs. blue issue, though Trump may be more willing to help states that voted for him in 2016. As purple states are prioritized, deep red, electoral locks are pushed farther down the waiting list alongside blue states.
Other states had only tiny slivers of their requests fulfilled, including some that had asked for them earlier than Florida. Oregon and Oklahoma received only about 10%; New Jersey got less than 6%.
As New York, a Democratic stronghold, continues to be ravaged by the coronavirus, Trump is still largely ignoring them.
Trump isn’t governing as if all lives are equally valuable. He seems to be weighing voting power in making life-and-death decisions for everyday Americans.
1,175 days in, 287 to go
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