By TINA RYNBERG and JEFF BENESCH
It’s been a strange and tragic couple of weeks, even for the incredibly dysfunctional Trump Administration. As the economy continued its free fall with a shrinking GDP and unemployment numbers near Depression Era levels, the U.S. COVID-19 death toll eclipsed 70,000, passing the total American casualty count of the Vietnam War in a little over two months.
It was a bizarro world where armed militants with AK-47s and body armor entered Michigan’s Capitol Building; a Von’s shopper in Santee used his Klansman hood as a face mask; anti-government protesters used Nazi verbage on their homemade signs; and in Downtown San Diego and Encinitas, a couple hundred MAGA-clad nutjobs ignored social distancing (some with gloves and N95 masks!) protested Gavin Newsom and our state’s shelter-in-place mandates.
The President of the United States seriously suggested Lysol, bleach and UV rays be taken internally to stem the virus and he signed an executive order commanding all meat processing plants to remain open, even while workers in those facilities contract and die of COVID-19 in staggering numbers. “Reopening” began in states, even while new COVID cases are increasing in those states. Bizarro world indeed.
On May 6, the La Mesa Foothills Democratic Club held its first ever virtual round table with a number of influential politicos offering up their experiences and suggestions for Democratic activism during our sequestering in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. Created and moderated by our own social media guru Mitch Wagner, you can find a link to the YouTube recording of the meeting on our club website: lamesafoothillsdemocraticclub.com or on our Facebook page.
Furthermore, if you’re looking for an opportunity to volunteer to help your neighbors without leaving the house, sign up for phone-banking through the San Diego County Democratic Party. You’ll call seniors throughout the county who live alone to help connect them with helpful resources. All you need is a phone and computer. Sign up at sddemocrats.org/wellness.
— Tina Rynberg is president and Jeff Benesch is vice president of programming of the La Mesa Foothills Democratic Club.
