Oct 27 (Reuters) - In the early days of what became a historic public health crisis, the novel coronavirus was, in the lexicon of U.S. politics, a "blue state" problem - centered in East and West Coast areas, particularly New York and New Jersey, that voted against President Donald Trump in 2016.
It remained so for weeks, and that fact defined what became battle lines between mask wearers and skeptics, and between those convinced restrictions on commerce were needed to save lives versus those who wanted less government intervention.
Now, though, it is squarely a "Trump country" issue.
Trump trails in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 3 election, partly on the basis of his handling of a pandemic that saw him feuding with state governors, questioning government scientists, and hesitant to frame a national response to a crisis that easily spread across state lines. He refused to change course even after catching the disease himself and requiring hospitalization.
For a while in the spring it looked like the hands-off approach might work. The daily growth in new cases declined in the hard-hit Northeast corridor, while remaining level in the Trump states of the South and Midwest.
AOL is now a part of Verizon Media
Both sides baby. BOTH SIDES.
It remained so for weeks, and that fact defined what became battle lines between mask wearers and skeptics, and between those convinced restrictions on commerce were needed to save lives versus those who wanted less government intervention.
Now, though, it is squarely a "Trump country" issue.
Trump trails in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 3 election, partly on the basis of his handling of a pandemic that saw him feuding with state governors, questioning government scientists, and hesitant to frame a national response to a crisis that easily spread across state lines. He refused to change course even after catching the disease himself and requiring hospitalization.
For a while in the spring it looked like the hands-off approach might work. The daily growth in new cases declined in the hard-hit Northeast corridor, while remaining level in the Trump states of the South and Midwest.
AOL is now a part of Verizon Media
Both sides baby. BOTH SIDES.