Thread by @cfarivar, THREAD: 3 wks ago, I reached @PHXFire PIO Capt. Rob McDade, who [...]

THREAD: 3 wks ago, I reached @PHXFire PIO Capt. Rob McDade, who said last month his dept had put in multiple PPE orders worth $4.2M.

In lieu of surgical gowns, he said, PFD ordered rain ponchos.

To date, nearly all of the orders haven't been received.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

My esteemed colleagues @jonallendc and @PhilMcCausland have been doing our darndest to find out what’s been going on with Phoenix, and also the rest of the country.

We still haven’t heard from the PHX mayor’s office, or the Arizona gov’s office. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

Political influence skews Trump's coronavirus response

The president and his aides have consolidated power amid the coronavirus crisis, picking winners and losers based in part on personal relationships and partisan loyalty.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

In the case of PHX, the fire chief herself told @12News that the orders had been “hijacked.”

I’ve heard similar from nurses, too.

https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/valley/phoenix-fire-chief-protective-gowns-getting-hijacked/75-e1b5ca67-daa5-4575-86a8-d89f8d9b9121

This announcement from FEMA was added to its site yesterday, the same day I emailed the agency.

https://www.fema.gov/coronavirus/rumor-control

Nevertheless, the city doesn’t have a clear explanation as to what happened, regardless of whether you call it a “hijacking” or “diversion” or whatever else.

This is the 5th largest city in these United States. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

Political influence skews Trump's coronavirus response

The president and his aides have consolidated power amid the coronavirus crisis, picking winners and losers based in part on personal relationships and partisan loyalty.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

Meantime, as the lede of the story describes, there’s also Mike Bowen.

He’s a guy who runs a Texas company called Prestige Ameritech, which claims to be the country’s "largest domestic surgical mask manufacturer.” https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

Political influence skews Trump's coronavirus response

The president and his aides have consolidated power amid the coronavirus crisis, picking winners and losers based in part on personal relationships and partisan loyalty.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

Prestige Ameritech is curious.

This is a company who has been trying to get federal attention to domestic manufacturing for years.

Back in 2017, Bowen called Trump’s “buy American” push as a bunch of “hot air,” when it wouldn’t sign with him.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/health-care/2017/08/14/tarrant-county-surgical-mask-maker-who-backed-trump-s-buy-american-pledge-now-sees-it-as-hot-air/

So then Bowen goes on Steve Bannon’s podcast, and boom, he gets a federal contract.

"THE PROCUREMENT OF N95 MODEL 1860 RESPIRATORS IS DIRECTED BY THE WHITE HOUSE…"

https://www.usaspending.gov/#/award/CONT_AWD_70FB7020P00000018_7022_-NONE-_-NONE-

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

I reached out multiple times to Bowen, via email, text, and even LinkedIn.

Ultimately, via LinkedIn, he Bowen declined to answer my questions.

Then he deleted his account entirely.

So that’s fun.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

So what are we left with?

The White House itself says that to even “speculate” that it is playing politics with the federal response is “outrageous.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

And on top of it all, Bowen’s Prestige Ameritech is getting (seemingly free?) labor, courtesy of the @texasguard!

Heck, the governor’s office even made a promo video ! It’s very jaunty.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/political-influence-skews-trump-s-coronavirus-response-n1191236

Political influence skews Trump's coronavirus response

The president and his aides have consolidated power amid the coronavirus crisis, picking winners and losers based in part on personal relationships and partisan loyalty.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ITdrHYuwoo

This deal got my attention, and I asked around to see if it was normal.

Dwight Sterling—a @USCGouldLaw lecturer, and active duty JAG officer from 2007 to 2014, where he served as the @CalGuard ’s senior prosecutor—told me that this is decidedly not.

https://centerforlaw.org/dwight-bio

FYI, Sterling’s quote got cut for length.

(It’s rare for an @NBCNews piece to go as long as ours did, in my experience. We are grateful for the expert editing from NBC’s top brass, particularly @sinderbrand & @fstonenyc.)

TLDR: I still don’t know where @PHXFire’s PPE is.

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