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Have the president's promises matched reality? @timkmak reports an NPR team checked promises the president made March 13, when declaring a state of emergency. With lives in the balance, many promises were not kept. Details follow. @NPR
On March 13, says @timkmak, the president promised "drive-through tests" at stores. "Walmart has opened two testing sites. Walgreens has opened two in Chicago; CVS has opened four sites. Target has not opened any." Eight sites. Companies say they await government leadership. @NPR
More from @timkmak: "The president and his team promised Google was working on a website that would integrate screening, facilitate a nearby drive-through testing location, and then send you back your results -- all in one.... That never happened."
In promising the website that never materialized, the president took an apparent shot at an Obamacare website that was delayed years ago: "It’s going to be very quickly done, unlike websites of the past." With lives and the economy at stake, the site isn't done. @UpFirst @NPR
Other presidential promises required collaboration with states - for example, loosening requirements for licensing doctors. The president hasn't secured that cooperation. He said he would buy oil to prop up the market, but didn't get the money from Congress. @NPR @MorningEdition
A president's power is limited. In an earlier crisis, Truman claimed he had "the power to keep the country from going to hell." The Supreme Court found he didn't. Much presidential leadership rests not on law but moral leadership, persuasion, trust. Squandering that costs a lot.
