Trump-Themed Masks, Courting Bernie Fans & the Meme-able Governor

www.ozy.com From the editor | April 09 Welcome to Take on 2020, the newsletter that is looking forward to the Cuomo brothers’ traveling variety act once this is all over. Read on as we cut through the cable news shouting matches to give you a fresh, multipartisan and global look at the week’s political news. Tell us how we’re doing and your favorite apocalyptic tunes at politics@ozy.com. Nick Fouriezos, Senior Politics Reporter Sponsored by Unsolicited Advice Biden masks or Fauci bobbleheads? On Sunday, former Vice President Joe Biden declared he would wear a mask in public, saying: “Follow the science!” Will all 2020 candidates don the cloth? Starved for media attention, Biden should milk the moment with a social media contest asking supporters to post their best coronavirus masks lampooning President Donald Trump’s early lackluster response. He could even work in an Obama administration reference with: “Thanks, Donald.” Meanwhile, Trump has branded everything from steaks to [straws]( … so why not market Anthony Fauci bobbleheads via his campaign store, reinforcing the theme that Trump trusts his experts? Plus, bobbleheads can only nod “yes.” Rising Star Josh Hawley We called him “Missouri’s Young Man in a Hurry” [in August 2018](, and the youngest U.S. senator has wasted no time since arriving in D.C. last year. Hawley, 40, is one of the most aggressive Republicans in advocating for action to protect American jobs amid the pandemic — including Uncle Sam directly paying employee salaries in a “survival then surge” strategy. European nations, including Germany and Denmark, are already instituting similar plans with some positive results. And Hawley’s push for more federal spending typifies an emerging [economic populist attitude]( among younger Republicans that could bring him in conflict with his party’s old bulls. [Sponsored by CARIUMA]( [This Sneaker Has Your Back. And Your Feet]( Whether your spring is mapped out or you prefer to make plans on the fly, CARIUMA is the crazy comfortable sneaker brand that gets you there in style. Soft memory foam insole. Bright colors. Sleek, sturdy canvas. It’s a sneaker brand that feels as good as it looks. Step into spring and [save $15 by using the OZYOZY code here.]( PoliTechs Live Nation Forced online, some politicos are basking in their new spotlight. More than 4.7 million tuned in to daily updates from New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo over one recent six-day stretch, on platforms ranging from Facebook to Periscope. And while Trump’s presidential briefings always get viewership from loyal supporters and hate-watchers alike, even more impressive is his campaign’s success in getting millions to watch live streams featuring his staffers, including “Women for Trump,” “Latinos for Trump” and “Catholics for Trump” events. That attention is worth its weight in gold, and will be difficult for Biden to overcome if left unmatched. The Big Number 1.82 This might seem like a small number, but it's a big problem, considering that Utah has only 1.82 hospital beds available for every 1,000 people. With a dearth of physicians too, the Beehive State is the least prepared in the country to treat a surge of coronavirus cases, [according to a recent study](. However, Utah’s neighbors keep it company: Nine of the 10 least-prepared states were in the West, where governors have been among the slowest to enact social distancing. New York was one of the nation’s most prepared, yet still faces supply shortages and overrun hospitals. Can the West survive the pandemic’s expected peak in mid-April? Barbershop Debate Bridge Building Bernie Sanders laid down his sword on Wednesday, bowing out of the presidential campaign to return to a life of senatorial fulminating — and perhaps, [we posit, a media empire](? That leaves Biden’s most urgent task as uniting the party at a time when Bernie's backers are fuming. Tell us the first thing you’d do if you were Uncle Joe at politics@ozy.com, and we'll share the most clever answers next week. Last week we asked if Tara Reade’s sexual assault allegations against Biden were getting enough play … and we got a deluge of correspondence arguing both sides. Robert S. writes of the president’s multiple assault accusations, and infamous "Access Hollywood" tape: “I think if we’re going to talk about damning and replacing someone at the top of a ticket perhaps we should start with Trump.” Randy S. writes: “Biden enjoys the best protection the Media et. al. can muster. Compare the treatment Brett Kavanaugh received, given that both he and Biden were alleged to have committed similar acts.” Butterfly Effect Every Breath You Take If the fight to bring the coronavirus to heel were a race among nations, we have a clear winner. South Korea is the world’s envy in the battle against the pandemic. But while we’ve all heard of the country’s unwavering emphasis on swift testing, there’s another critical tool it has deployed that’s leaving governments salivating the world over, including in the West: mass surveillance. [And if history’s any indicator, that should worry us all.]( Just take a look at the erosion of civil liberties from the post-9/11 era, add a dash of AI and ubiquitous smartphones, and you can see the troubling direction we’re headed. For the Hell of It Governor Meme Plenty of local leaders [have rocketed to stardom]( amid coronavirus. Few seem unlikelier than Andy Beshear, the 42-year-old Kentucky governor who gives off “not-mad-just-disappointed dad vibes,” as CNET’s Erin Carson hilariously noted [in her piece]( observing his new meme stardom. A Facebook page titled “Andy Beshear Memes for Social Distancing Teens” has more than 200,000 members since starting on March 20. Favorite memes include riffs on his daily briefing catchphrase “We can’t be doing that” and nods to him restricting out-of-state travel described as: "Andy says we can't go to y’alls states no more cause y'all can't act right." OZY Media Mountain View, California 94040 This email was sent to {EMAIL} [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Read Online](