COVID WARS

Even before the coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China in 2019, American leaders like presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama had anticipated the possibility of a global outbreak—their preparations and warnings were largely disregarded by the Trump administration, per the author. Yet despite Trump’s fumbling of the public messaging about the pandemic, his administration’s Operation Warp Speed achieved the extraordinary by fast-tracking Covid-19 vaccines in just seven months. (“By reducing the drug makers’ financial risk, Warp Speed greatly accelerated the development of the COVID vaccines.”) Gruner maintains a consistently nonpartisan approach, highlighting the tyrannical overreach of some Republican governors during lockdowns while noting then–Vice President Joe Biden’s early vaccine skepticism during the 2020 election. The author discusses similar outbreaks in America’s past, like the 1918 Spanish Flu and the 1957 Asian Flu, to explore the government’s role in managing public health crises in a nation that holds personal freedom (inconsistently, perhaps) as sacrosanct. Writing with future historians in mind, Gruner systematically examines the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on the United States in 10 chapters that incorporate over 80 charts, tables, and graphs. Red and blue states’ differing strategies regarding lockdowns and reopenings serve as case studies, offering hard data that tracks deaths both caused by and related to the virus as well as its economic and educational impact. To call the book thorough would be an understatement; over 100 pages of appendices and citations include state and country demographics, term definitions, acronyms, and a robust index to supplement an already well-structured and succinct resource. The author’s approach is dispassionate, allowing the massive death toll and preventable mistakes to speak for themselves. Responsibility is placed on political leaders, media, entertainment figures, and individual citizens without Gruner ever taking an accusatory tone; the stark and undeniable numbers do the job.

Mar 14, 2025 - 22:33

Even before the coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China in 2019, American leaders like presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama had anticipated the possibility of a global outbreak—their preparations and warnings were largely disregarded by the Trump administration, per the author. Yet despite Trump’s fumbling of the public messaging about the pandemic, his administration’s Operation Warp Speed achieved the extraordinary by fast-tracking Covid-19 vaccines in just seven months. (“By reducing the drug makers’ financial risk, Warp Speed greatly accelerated the development of the COVID vaccines.”) Gruner maintains a consistently nonpartisan approach, highlighting the tyrannical overreach of some Republican governors during lockdowns while noting then–Vice President Joe Biden’s early vaccine skepticism during the 2020 election. The author discusses similar outbreaks in America’s past, like the 1918 Spanish Flu and the 1957 Asian Flu, to explore the government’s role in managing public health crises in a nation that holds personal freedom (inconsistently, perhaps) as sacrosanct. Writing with future historians in mind, Gruner systematically examines the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on the United States in 10 chapters that incorporate over 80 charts, tables, and graphs. Red and blue states’ differing strategies regarding lockdowns and reopenings serve as case studies, offering hard data that tracks deaths both caused by and related to the virus as well as its economic and educational impact. To call the book thorough would be an understatement; over 100 pages of appendices and citations include state and country demographics, term definitions, acronyms, and a robust index to supplement an already well-structured and succinct resource. The author’s approach is dispassionate, allowing the massive death toll and preventable mistakes to speak for themselves. Responsibility is placed on political leaders, media, entertainment figures, and individual citizens without Gruner ever taking an accusatory tone; the stark and undeniable numbers do the job.