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Trump to See Mount Rushmore and Coronavirus Peak in South Dakota

Doug Ekeren, president of Avera Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton, says that a modified model predicts a peak of about 132,000 to 133,000 South Dakotans outside of Sioux Falls suffering from coronavirus around July 4. Ekeren predicts an early July peak of 13,200 positive infections in his hospital’s seven-county service area. The Avera Yankton chief says the peak will pick up steam in the second week of June and run through the third week of July.

And that’s in East River, six hours away from where maskless contagion meister Donald Trump and his increasingly nervous entourage will make their unnecessary campaign travel to Mount Rushmore on July 3. Keystone, even amidst its economic woes, isn’t looking forward to being at the pointy end of all those Trumpy disease vectors:

President Trump’s plan to attend a fireworks display July 3 at Mount Rushmore National Memorial has some people worried in the small tourist town at the base of the mountain.

Lynette Gohsman is the president of the town board of Keystone, population 337. She said past fireworks shows at Mount Rushmore filled her town with visitors. This time, she worries the visitors might bring COVID-19.

“I think we’re all concerned about that,” Gohsman said [Seth Tupper, “Keystone Braces for COVID Threat from Rushmore Fireworks Crowd,” SDPB, 2020.05.11].

Hmm… maybe a big White House trip, during a coronavirus peak, drawing thousands of visitors to to a town that can only afford to rent 12 porta-potties isn’t the best idea. Besides, the show won’t be that fun anyway if only a lucky few get to attend and they all have to watch from their cars:

In the governor’s office, Senior Adviser and Policy Director Maggie Seidel said options for preventing the spread of COVID-19 are being considered. One option is making a limited number of tickets to the fireworks show available through a lottery.

“What if the restriction is that people can watch exclusively from their cars? What if they have to practice social distancing? What if it’s just TV only?” Seidel said [Tupper, 2020.05.11].

Donald, maybe you should just go to Kristi’s mansion and watch the fireworks on TV like the rest of us. Or maybe you could watch together live on Fox from her private video studio! You could put the fireworks up on the green screen behind you, pretend you’re there, and offer color commentary!

15 Comments

  1. Richard 2020-05-12 07:40

    Speaking of Covid and SD. Governor Noem’s PSA on my TV claims we have leveled the curve 75%. I’m not sure what that means, but I do not a decline in cases on the Argus website, nor on the SD dashboard. I do see the SD dashboard “Trend Data” section has not added any cases since 4/29. Which is when an increase in the number of sick people started to occur. Must be a simple coincidence.

  2. leslie 2020-05-12 07:43

    So grdz, you gotta couple tart words for this Maggie Seidel critter? You gonna deliver yerself w/Thune and Putin at the USFS fire-bomb proofed Balkanization ceremony at Mt Rushmore? Bring a tape-measure but don’t drink the water. Trump’s head should fit on the NxNW side of the stone. Resign the Mthrfkr!

  3. leslie 2020-05-12 07:46

    Oh, and STAY ALERT! JFC :(

  4. twu 2020-05-12 08:05

    I’d be interested to know more about this “modified model.” Though certainly not impossible, 130,000 identified cases outside SF would equate to 18.5% of the population (infection/[SD pop – SF pop] OR 130,000/[880,000 – 180,000]), which seems to be a pretty big outlier, yes?

  5. mike from iowa 2020-05-12 09:01

    drumpf and Noem prolly think coronavirus peak is an actual mountain alongside Rushmore. Or as Miss Juanita jean is prone to saying, “I am not saying these two are dumb, yeah that is exactly what I am saying.”

  6. jerry 2020-05-12 09:57

    Maybe, Keystone should tell him he is not welcome until the crisis is over. Here is what this factory, that makes protective equipment, told him

    “President Trump was pushing to get out in the public eye in recent weeks and tout his leadership during the pandemic, and White House staff thought they had hit on the ideal event: a presidential visit to thank the Pennsylvania factory workers who had recently taken herculean steps to ramp up U.S. supplies of protective equipment.

    Workers had received national attention after dozens of them lived for 28 days inside their factory so they could ensure they were virus-free and their production was not contaminated or disrupted by illness.

    White House officials pressed to hold an event at the Braskem factory, initially scheduled for last Friday. But after extensive back and forth, factory officials ultimately asked to postpone, worried that a visit from Trump could jeopardize both the safety of the workers and the plant’s ability to produce special material for masks and other medical gear, according to two people familiar with the decision and documents reviewed by The Post.” Washington Post 5.12.2020

    trump is the plague, simple as that.

  7. jerry 2020-05-12 10:10

    As trump and Queen NOem kibitz about campaign thingy’s for trump, maybe they could both go visit Smithfield in Sioux Falls. You know, to get a chance to see how things are going and kick the tires so to speak. It could be a wonderful hands on experience for the both of them to mingle with those that produce the national security food for…

  8. Loren 2020-05-12 11:43

    Set up a presidential size display and then restrict the number of people that can attend? Isn’t there a subtle message in there somewhere? Maybe I just don’t understand Trumpian, Thunian, Roundian, Noemian politics.

  9. Cory Allen Heidelberger Post author | 2020-05-12 12:16

    Indeed, TWU—that’s a lot of cases and a strong doubling rate between now and then. Maybe Avera will share its data….

  10. mike from iowa 2020-05-12 12:33

    drumpf’s body count surpassed 82K earlier today.

    How can Noem claim we’re all in this together when she refuses to do what smart gvvs have done and restrict opportunities of this virus to spread like wildfire? No Indian ever should trust wasicu government agreements again.

  11. o 2020-05-12 14:47

    In the new Trump order of “getting along to get along,” I do see a possibility that the best interests of SD are met by staying on the President’s good side. If smiling and nodding allows SD to use the 1.6 billion Federal dollars as needed – with few strings attached – I say smile and nod.

  12. mike from iowa 2020-05-12 15:56

    Stopping the virus from spreading usually is not explained as ordering more people to get sick. What the tribes are presently doing seems to be working for them and Noem wants them to stop discriminating and allow their peoples equal opportunity to get sick and die?

    Asking for no friend I ever had.

  13. Debbo 2020-05-12 21:48

    “trump is the plague, simple as that.”

    That’s a very good comment, Jerry.

    There’s no way around it. Mangled Mango needs to stay home and do his job and Get Off the Damn Phone! He’s been tweeting 100+ times per day. That’s hours and hours just tweeting.

    His level of crazy is spiking faster than COVID-19.

  14. mike from iowa 2020-05-13 14:19

    Corona virus peaked yet?

    Last updated: May 13, 2020, 19:12 GMT
    United States
    Coronavirus Cases:
    1,420,421
    Deaths:
    84,353

    Not hardly. But, don’t fear. drumpf is focused on saving Flynn’s lying buttcheeks. If people die, they die. Just like the flu, right?

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