Coronavirus: I don't know who needs to hear this, but brands can't save you

In his public speeches, President Trump has all but excused the federal government of much responsibility and instead, turned to America's brands

Ten or 20 years from now, by the time the current crisis has hardened into a cautionary tale about the dangers of governmental incompetence, I imagine we’ll look back on Donald Trump’s Rose Garden news conference of Friday, March 13, as the moment that finally shattered the world’s faith in America. What broke me, at least, was the spectacular smallness on display — how, in the span of about an hour that afternoon, the illusion of American can-do greatness shrivelled like a frightened turtle right before our eyes.
 
President Trump had been disastrously late to lead the fight against