China as Covid-19 scapegoat

In January, President Donald Trump congratulated China for its virus battle. Following the White House’s disastrous failure to contain the virus, Trump now blames China for the virus. But scapegoats do not hide policy blunders.

IN some countries, the disastrous failure to respond to the Covid-19 challenge has sparked intense debates and self-reflection, which may prevent such policy failures in the future. In some other countries, catastrophic failures continue to be denied and projected to perceived adversaries. Thanks to a series of failures by the Trump White House, the United States now belongs to the latter category.