Thank you, President Trump!

“Dear World, I am leaving because I am bored. I feel I have lived long enough. I am leaving you with your worries in this sweet cesspool. Good luck.”

—George Sanders

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

BY the time this article comes out, outgoing U.S. President Donald Trump must be on his way to Florida, his official residence. 

He has repeatedly declared he would not attend President-elect Joseph Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday, January 20.

Not good for his legacy in particular, and for history in general; but we respect his decision. 

We know he is still hurting after a failed bid to overturn the legitimate and orderly election by using arm-twisting tactics, among other dirty means, including instigating a riot that killed five people in Capitol Hill on January 6, to no avail.

It was reported that Mr. Trump was instead planning to leave the White House January 20 morning for a send-off ceremony at Joint Base Andrews before flying to Florida, where he is expected to spend much of his post-presidency.

The outgoing President would likely make remarks as more than 200 service members were reportedly expected to participate in Mr. Trump’s formal departure, which U.S. officials said, would include a 21-gun salute, a color guard and other ceremonial units. 

 

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Officials said the exact program for the event would be still in flux, adding that it was unclear how many people would attend.

Mr. Trump was expected to fly to his private Florida club, Mar-a-Lago as his presidency concludes at 12:01 p.m. on Wednesday following the event.

Much has already been said and written about his notoriety, especially his poor handling of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which was blamed to be the primary reason why he badly lost to Mr. Biden by eight million in popular votes and 306-232 in Electoral College votes.

Even if he destroyed his own legacy by repeatedly lying to his base and voters that the election he clearly lost was “stolen” from him, let’s give credit where credit is due when it comes to his accomplishments as the 45^th U.S. President.

The Trump administration will be credited for “building the world’s most prosperous economy,” according to his own assertion.

Under Mr. Trump, America reportedly gained seven million new jobs – “more than three times government experts’ projections.”

The following also occurred during Mr. Trump’s leadership in the White House, according to his own claims and the White House report:

—Middle-Class family income increased nearly $6,000 – more than five times the gains during the entire previous administration.

—The unemployment rate reached 3.5 percent, the lowest in a half-century.

—Achieved 40 months in a row with more job openings than job-hirings.

—More Americans reported being employed than ever before – nearly 160 million.

—Jobless claims hit a nearly 50-year low.

—The number of people claiming unemployment insurance as a share of the population hit its lowest on record.

—Incomes rose in every single metro area in the United States for the first time in nearly 3 decades.

—Delivered a future of greater promise and opportunity for citizens of all backgrounds.

—Unemployment rates for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and those without a high school diploma all reached record lows.

 

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—Unemployment for women hit its lowest rate in nearly 70 years.

—Lifted nearly 7 million people off of food stamps.

—Poverty rates for African Americans and Hispanic Americans reached record lows.

—Income inequality fell for two straight years, and by the largest amount in over a decade.

—The bottom 50 percent of American households saw a 40 percent increase in net worth.

—Wages rose fastest for low-income and blue collar workers – a 16 percent pay increase.

—African American homeownership increased from 41.7 percent to 46.4 percent.

—Brought jobs, factories, and industries back to the USA.

—Created more than 1.2 million manufacturing and construction jobs.

—Put in place policies to bring back supply chains from overseas.

—Small business optimism broke a 35-year old record in 2018.

Hit record stock market numbers and record 401ks.

—The DOW closed above 20,000 for the first time in 2017 and topped 30,000 in 2020.

—The S&P 500 and NASDAQ have repeatedly notched record highs.

Rebuilding and investing in rural America.

—Signed an Executive Order on Modernizing the Regulatory Framework for Agricultural Biotechnology Products, which is bringing innovative new technologies to market in American farming and agriculture.

—Strengthened America’s rural economy by investing over $1.3 billion through the Agriculture Department’s ReConnect Program to bring high-speed broadband infrastructure to rural America.

Achieved a record-setting economic comeback by rejecting blanket lockdowns.

—An October 2020 Gallup survey found 56 percent of Americans said they were better off during a pandemic than four years prior.

—During the third quarter of 2020, the economy grew at a rate of 33.1 percent – the most rapid GDP growth ever recorded.

—Since coronavirus lockdowns ended, the economy has added back over 12 million jobs, more than half the jobs lost.

—Jobs have been recovered 23 times faster than the previous administration’s recovery.

—Unemployment fell to 6.7 percent in December, from a pandemic peak of 14.7 percent in April – beating expectations of well over 10 percent unemployment through the end of 2020.

—Under the previous administration, it took 49 months for the unemployment rate to fall from 10 percent to under 7 percent compared to just 3 months for the Trump Administration.

—Since April, the Hispanic unemployment rate has fallen by 9.6 percent, Asian-American unemployment by 8.6 percent, and Black American unemployment by 6.8 percent.

—80 percent of small businesses are now open, up from just 53 percent in April.

—Small business confidence hit a new high.

—Homebuilder confidence reached an all-time high, and home sales hit their highest reading since December 2006.

—Manufacturing optimism nearly doubled.

—Household net worth rose $7.4 trillion in Q2 2020 to $112 trillion, an all-time high.

—Home prices hit an all-time record high.

—The United States rejected crippling lockdowns that crush the economy and inflict countless public health harms and instead safely reopened its economy.

—Business confidence is higher in America than in any other G7 or European Union country.

—Stabilized America’s financial markets with the establishment of a number of Treasury Department supported facilities at the Federal Reserve.

Thank you, President Trump. Thank you for both the good and bad memories you left us all. Good luck on your second impeachment trial and your new life as “Citizen Donald.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

 

 

Alex P. Vidal Quotes

 

Joseph Robinette Biden Jr.

“Being president is like being a jackass in a hailstorm. There's nothing to do but to stand there and take it.”

—Lyndon B. Johnson

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THERE is no doubt that Joseph “Joe” Robinette Biden Jr. will become the most powerful man in the world and the oldest president in U.S. history at age 78 on Wednesday, January 20, 2021.

He is expected to be sworn in as the 46th president of the most politically and economically robust nation on earth, alongside his running mate, Senator Kamala Harris, who will become the first woman and woman of color to serve as U.S. vice president.

He was declared the president-elect of the United States on November 7, 2020 following an initially tight electoral college contest against the angry incumbent President Donald Trump and four days of vote-counting. 

In an election carried out during a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, as well as a nation reckoning over racial injustice, Mr. Biden won over 74 million popular votes—the most in U.S. presidential election history. 

The Electoral College cast a majority of votes for Mr. Biden, formalizing the presidential election in the manner set out in the Constitution on December 14, 2020.

The former senator, who served as vice president under the administration of President Barack Obama, Biden represented Delaware for 36 years in the U.S. Senate before becoming the 47th Vice President of the United States.

Mr. Biden was born November 20, 1942 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, the first of four siblings. 

 

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The Biden family moved from Pennsylvania to Claymont, Delaware in 1953. The incoming President graduated from the University of Delaware and Syracuse Law School and served on the New Castle County Council. 

Then, he became one of the youngest people ever elected to the United States Senate, at age 29.

Tragedy struck the Biden family just weeks after the election when then Senator-elect Biden's wife, Neilia, and their one-year-old daughter, Naomi, died and his two sons were injured in an auto accident. 

Mr. Biden was sworn into the U.S. Senate at his sons' hospital bedside and began commuting to Washington every day by train, a practice he maintained throughout his career in the Senate.

Mr. Biden married Jill Jacobs in 1977. Jill Biden holds a Doctorate in Education and is a life-long educator and currently teaches at a community college in Northern Virginia. 

The Vice President's son, Beau, was Delaware's Attorney General from 2007-2015 and a Major in the 261st Signal Brigade of the Delaware National Guard. 

He was deployed to Iraq in 2008-2009 and passed away in 2015 after battling brain cancer with the same integrity, courage, and strength he demonstrated every day of his life. 

Mr. Biden’s second son, Hunter, is an attorney who manages a private equity firm in Washington, D.C. 

His daughter Ashley is a social worker and Executive Director of the Delaware Center for Justice. 

Mr. Biden has five grandchildren: Naomi, Finnegan, Roberta Mabel ("Maisy"), Natalie, and Robert Hunter.

As a Senator from Delaware for 36 years, Mr. Biden established himself as a leader in facing some of our nation's most important domestic and international challenges.

 

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As Chairman or Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee for 17 years, then-Senator Biden was widely recognized for his work on criminal justice issues, including the landmark 1994 Crime Act and the Violence Against Women Act. As Chairman or Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for 12 years, then-Senator Biden played a pivotal role in shaping U.S. foreign policy. 

Mr. Biden has been at the forefront of issues and legislation related to terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, post-Cold War Europe, the Middle East, and Southwest Asia.

As the 47th Vice President of the United States, Mr. Biden continued his leadership on important issues facing the nation and represented America abroad, traveling over 1.2 million miles to more than 50 countries. 

He convened sessions of the President's Cabinet, led interagency efforts, and worked with Congress in his fight to raise the living standards of middle class Americans, reduce gun violence, and address violence against women. 

In the final year of the Administration, Vice President Biden led the Cancer Moonshot, an international effort to end cancer as we know it.

Mr. Biden has continued his legacy of expanding opportunity for all, both in the United States and abroad, with the creation of the Biden Foundation, the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement at the University of Pennsylvania, the Biden Cancer Initiative, and the Biden Institute at the University of Delaware since leaving the White House in January 2017. 

According to the Biden Institute, through these non-profit organizations, “Vice President Biden and Dr. Biden are developing programs designed to advance smart policies, convene experts and world leaders on the issues they care most about, and impact the national debate about how America can continue to lead in the 21st century.”

In addition, the Biden Institute reported that “Vice President Biden formed a political action committee, ‘American Possibilities,’ which will allow him to continue to support Democratic candidates and causes across the country.”

The Biden Institute added: “Finally, in November 2017, President-elec​t Biden released his second book, Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose. The book, a New York Times #1 Bestseller, is a personal story from a father, grandfather, husband, and friend as he confronts the inevitability of devastating personal loss, while trying to balance his duty to his family and his country.”

Mr. Biden has received numerous awards and accolades, including the National Civil Rights Museum's Freedom Award and the Medal of Freedom with Distinction.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

 

 

‘Build the wall first’

“The wide world is all about you: you can fence yourselves in, but you cannot forever fence it out.”

—J. R. R. Tolkien

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

TRUMP loyalist Luis Lomuntad, leader of Filipinos in Queens, New York City who believe the rightful winner in the November 3, 2020 presidential election was President Donald Trump, said they are not against the decision of President-elect Joseph R. Biden to offer legal status to an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants, including some Filipinos.

But there is one fundamental issue that Mr. Biden should resolve first and foremost, asserted the 64-year-old Tondo-raised Lomuntad: “He should first build the wall or finish the wall that was started by President Trump.”

Lomuntad said “the system will breakdown” if the wall that separates the United States from Mexico and other Hispanic-speaking countries started by Mr. Trump in 2017 will not be erected.

He pointed out that 9,000 people from Honduras have already started stampeding the U.S.-Mexico boundary as Mr. Biden announced the proposed granting of amnesty to the illegal immigrants in the U.S. territory.

“It’s fine because the illegal immigrants have been here for so many years now at hindi naman sila aalis dito. But Mr. Biden must first prioritize the building of the wall,” Lomuntad suggested. “They should also see to it that all the bad people are deported and only the good ones will remain here.”

Bataan-born Peter Campomanes, 80, of New Jersey, also a Trump supporter, agreed with Lomuntad.

“They should fix the system first,” Campomanes, a relative of the late former World Chess Federation (FIDE) president Florencio Campomanes, remarked.

 

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Before Mr. Trump took office, there were reportedly 654 miles (just over 1,000km) of barrier along the southern border made up of 354 miles of barricades to stop pedestrians and 300 miles of anti-vehicle fencing.

According to the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in its 6 October status report, the southern border now has 669 miles of "primary barrier"—the first structure people heading from Mexico to the U.S. will encounter—and 65 miles of "secondary barrier", which usually runs behind the primary structure as a further obstacle.

This means that in areas where no barricades existed before, they have built 15 miles of new, primary barrier or "border wall system", as it is called by CBP.

CBP further said about a further 350 miles of barrier has been built made up of replacement structures and some new secondary barrier.

More is reportedly planned, too, with 378 miles of new and replacement barrier either under construction or in the "pre-construction phase". 

Less than half of this will be in locations where no barriers currently exist, added the CBP.

Mr. Biden’s decision to immediately ask Congress to offer legal status to an estimated 11 million people in the country has reportedly surprised advocates given how the issue has long divided Democrats and Republicans, even within their own parties.

It was reported that in his first day in office, Mr. Biden disclosed he would announce to provide a path to citizenship for millions of immigrants in the United States illegally.

 

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The Democratic president-elect campaigned on a path to citizenship for the roughly 11 million people in the U.S. illegally, but it was unclear how quickly he would move while wrestling with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the economy and other priorities. 

For advocates, memories were fresh of presidential candidate Barack Obama pledging an immigration bill his first year in office, in 2009, but not tackling the issue until his second term after the Republican-dominated congress blocked Mr. Obama’s legislative agenda.

According to the Associated Press, “Biden’s plan is the polar opposite of Donald Trump, whose successful 2016 presidential campaign rested in part on curbing or stopping illegal immigration.”

AP quoted Marielena Hincapie, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, who was reportedly briefed on the bill, as saying: “This really does represent a historic shift from Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda that recognizes that all of the undocumented immigrants that are currently in the United States should be placed on a path to citizenship.”  

If successful, the legislation would be the biggest move toward granting status to people in the country illegally since President Ronald Reagan bestowed amnesty on nearly 3 million people in 1986. 

Legislative efforts to overhaul immigration policy reportedly failed in 2007 and 2013.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

 

Music to Pacquiao’s ears

“Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.”

—Bill Bradley

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THE announcement made last week by President Rodrigo Duterte that “the presidency was no job for a woman because of their emotional differences to men” was music to the ears of Senator Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao, who is rumored to be eyeing the presidency of the Philippines.

Pacquiao, 42, probably was thinking that Mr. Duterte hasn’t changed his mind when the President predicted during the world boxing champion’s 39^th birthday party on December 17, 2017 that “he would become the next Philippine president.”

The former eight-division world champion’s confidence must have been boosted when he was chosen as the new head of President Duterte’s political party, PDP-Laban, in December 2020.

Pacquiao has neither confirmed nor denied he was seeking the highest position of the land, but some of those who have been following his political career have noticed the sudden “mushrooming” of his videos in the social media showing him apparently “appealing to the people’s emotions.”

Based on some of the videos where he appeared, Pacquiao wanted to be known as a religious person who is against graft and corruption and abuse of power.

He has been advocating for a tough solution against criminalities consistently parroting the revival of death penalty for heinous crimes.    

It was his promoter, Top Rank CEO Bob Arum, who first announced in December 2008 during Pacquiao’s scintillating TKO win over Oscar De La Hoya in Las Vegas that the buzzsaw from General Santos City in Mindanao “would be the next Philippine president.”

 

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Mr. Duterte has dismissed speculation that his daughter, 42-year-old Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, would succeed him next year.

“My daughter is not running. I have told Inday not to run because I pity (her) knowing she will have to go through what I am going through,” Duterte, 75, said at the launch of a highway project, referring to his daughter Sara by her nickname.

“This is not for women. You know, the emotional set-up of a woman and a man is totally different. You will become a fool here. So... that is the sad story.”

The Philippines has had two women presidents, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo from 2001 to 2010 and Corazon Aquino from 1986 to 1992.

Mr. Duterte has been known to be notorious for comments often deemed offensive, sexist and misogynistic, but his apologists typically regarded his remarks harmless jokes. 

According to surveys, Mr. Duterte allegedly remains hugely popular among female voters in the Philippines.

Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, who succeeded him as mayor of Davao City, came top in a recent opinion poll that asked the public to choose a preferred candidate from a list of possible contenders for the 2022 elections.

Two other women, Vice President Leni Robredo and Senator Grace Poe, were considered to be “hypothetical contenders”, according to Reuters.

Philippines Presidents are allowed only one, six-year term in office. Mrs. Arroyo’s was longer as she took over from an impeached former president.

“What matters most especially when we talk of the presidency and public office is if the interests of the poor majority are upheld,” said Cristina Palabay of human rights group Karapatan who considered  women as “capable as men in any job” in reaction to the President’s remarks.

 

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President Donald Trump’s controversial press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, has reportedly decided not to stick around until the end of the term and packed up her office January 15. 

Except when she allowed herself to be used as a comical tool to lie repeatedly to the American people that the November 3, 2020 presidential election was fraudulent, I personally admired her especially the way she parried difficult questions from critical White House reporters.

Although McEnany will continue officially holding the role, she will reportedly no longer be at the White House, or even in the nation’s capital. 

McEnany will reportedly be working remotely from Tampa until January 20, the inauguration of day of the incoming Biden administration.

McEnany actually sent out a tweet acknowledging that after some reports came out she was leaving. 

She tweeted: “As I leave the White House, I have the privilege of reading notes from incredible servants to our country.” 

Amid the packing up she also had time for one last tiff with a journalist, pushing back against a tweet from the New York Times’ Maggie Haberman, who first reported the news that McEnany was leaving the White House. 

 

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Haberman had tweeted that “the last time McEnany responded to a question from me was when it was a story about herself.” The press secretary said that “with one exception, the last time she emailed me was July,” speculating that was because she “refused to be an anonymous source for her.”

McEnany took on the job of press secretary in April from Stephanie Grisham, who served for nine months and didn’t hold a single news conference. 

She had been a staunch defender of Trump on cable news before joining him in the White House.

Ever since Trump moved into the White House, his press secretaries often made news themselves as they tried to speak for a president who often liked to talk for himself via Twitter. 

Sean Spicer was the first press secretary and he only lasted seven months. Then came Sarah Huckabee Sanders who was in the role the longest, serving for almost two years until June, 2019. In her first news conference, McEnany famously told reporters, “I will never lie to you. You have my word on that.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

 

Back in Brooklyn

“Nothing is cooler and more attractive than a big comeback, and that'll be me.”

—Steven Adler

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

AFTER 11 months, I’m back in Brooklyn.

The last time I was in New York City's most populous borough, with an estimated 2,648,403 residents in 2020, was in March 2020 for a special assignment.

I was barred from entering the archetype apartment building, erected in the year when the 1936 Berlin Olympics was held, after authorities locked down the Empire Estate to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). 

I was in the entrance when greeted by a screaming advisory: “Effective March 22, 2020, all non-residents aren’t allowed inside this building due to COVID-19.”

The advisory came two days after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo issued a PAUSE order that would go into effect on March 22 at eight o’clock in the evening with 5,683 confirmed cases in New York City alone on March 20, 2020.

Before the statewide stay-at-home order also known as the "New York State on PAUSE" executive order was put in place on March 14, all New York Public Library branches in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island were also temporarily closed. 

The Queens Public Library and Brooklyn Public Library were also closed even as Theaters, concert venues, and nightclubs in NYC have been shut down since March 17. 

I felt like I was walking in a town soon to be invaded by the zombies. People started to stay away from the streets. 

It’s good the subway train didn’t stop its operation.

 

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Restaurants were restricted to take-out and delivery only. 

Schools were closed until at least April 20. Gyms were closed as well.

I thought I would never see that fantastic building again which had  Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian designs similar to the ancient Roman buildings. 

From where I was standing, I recorded a video of myself retreating from the building as a way of “permanently” saying goodbye and adieu to my other livelihood. 

I thought of posting the video on social media for record purposes, but succeeding events overcame the planned melodrama. 

From Brooklyn, I went back to Queens and stayed in my apartment for three months for an extended lockdown as COVID-19 embarked on a murderous binge. 

And the rest was history as COVID-19 transformed into a pandemic and terrorized not only New York but also the world.

On January 12, a feeling of déjà vu engulfed my emotion as I entered the prized edifice again. I’m back in the harness finally.     

 

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VULGAR FAVORS. On my first day in Brooklyn, I found two interesting things: 1. A food pack containing cooked brown rice and two silver plastic sachets of pink salmon in water (no salt added) and 2. A brand-new hardbound book titled “Vulgar Favors” by Maureen Orth worth $24.95 on a sidewalk bench.

I secured the food pack for a lunch and briefly read the book, which was so astonishing as it revealed the explosive story of the late Filipino-American sensation Andrew Cunanan and his cross-country killing spree in its entirety.

According to Frank Bruni of the New York Times, 'Vulgar Favors'' is framed, somewhat disingenuously, as both a cautionary tale about unchecked materialism and hedonism and an expose of the seamiest underside of gay life, the possibly fatal bungling of law enforcement and the voracious appetites of scandal-chasing journalists.

“For all of Maureen Orth's febrile efforts to tattle and titillate, to delve deep into the mechanics of a national manhunt and even deeper into the psychology of a killer, perhaps the most shocking thing about 'Vulgar Favors,’ her exhaustive deconstruction of Andrew Cunanan's five murders and his apparent suicide, is the reminder that the killings occurred only two years ago,” explained Bruni.  

“So many other sordid stories have come and gone; so many other villains and victims have laid claim to the media spotlight. Although Orth produced her book as quickly as could be expected, the shelf life of criminal celebrity has shortened to the point where Cunanan's tale already seems old.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

 

 

 

A sad day for America

“America's present need is not heroics but healing; not nostrums but normalcy; not revolution but restoration.”

—Warren G. Harding

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

FILIPINOS who continued to monitor the events in the United States since March 2020 about the pandemic and before and after the November 3, 2020 U.S. presidential election can learn many things and lessons about the issues and crisis the Americans are facing today.

On the day the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) reached a record 23 million cases in the United States and with a one-day high of 4,327 deaths, President Donald Trump became the first U.S. president in the history to be impeached twice on January 13.

The latest pandemic data was so scary, but the country’s attention was largely focused on the fallout from the deadly uprising at Washington D.C.’s Capitol Hill, where Congress impeached the President on a vote of 232-197 for inciting the insurrection on January 6 that killed five people, including a federal police officer.

Seven days before President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will officially take over the reigns of the White House, thousands of National Guard troops have started to be deployed in Washington D.C.

Like the country is preparing for a civil war, local and federal security officials expect about 20,000 National Guard members to be involved in securing Washington, D.C., for Biden's and Harris’ inauguration next week.

 

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There are Filipinos here who continued to root for Mr. Trump despite what happened on January 6, and some of them have disagreed with the decision of the congress people to impeach their idol.

“Sa media lang natalo si Trump,” a female friend from the Orange County in California insisted in her private message.

She said the impeachment was “unnecessary because even if the election was stolen from President Trump, the President is now willing to pave the way for the new administration because he loves America.”

She then started to send links from websites that promote conspiracy theories and other lies perpetrated against the Democrats and the election in 2020. 

Rioters and those who have been misled that the election was rigged were believed to be getting their false and incredible information from the dubious websites.

It was a sad day for America indeed because of the two battles it is facing: COVID-19 pandemic and the terrible misinformation and lies about the election which many experts and most Americans learned was the most secured and successful in history in terms of turnout of voters.  

According to Johns Hopkins Hospital, America’s overall death toll from COVID-19 has eclipsed 380,000, and was closing in fast on the number of Americans killed in World War II, or about 407,000. 

 

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Confirmed infections have reportedly topped 22.8 million as Arizona and California have been among the hardest-hit states. 

The United States is now reportedly in the most lethal phase of the outbreak yet, even as vaccines are being rolled out.

US News reported that the country was averaging about 249,000 new cases per day, and about 3,300 deaths. 

The death toll in the U.S. since the start of the pandemic now stands at more than 381,000.

USA Today reported that even as the coronavirus is running rampant through large swaths of Southern California, a substantial number of health care workers—who are first in line for the vaccine—are rejecting the shots.

“About half the hospital workers offered the COVID vaccine in Riverside County, southeast of hard-hit Los Angeles County, have turned it down. With a population of 2.5 million, Riverside County on Tuesday became the eighth county in the nation to exceed 200,000 coronavirus cases,” reported the USA Today.

It was further learned that facing a slower-than-hoped coronavirus vaccine rollout, officials around the United States shifted gears January 12 to accelerate the delivery of shots to more people. 

The U.S. government was reported to be asking states to speed up COVID-19 vaccinations to people over 65 and others at risk instead of holding back vaccines for a second dose. 

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)