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Jamie Dupree

Swine Flu

By
Jamie Dupree
@ April 27, 2009 12:00 AM
Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Mention swine flu in a political context, and all I can think about is the troubles it presented the Gerald Ford Administration in 1976. Now swine flu has landed in the lap of President Obama.

In a special Sunday briefing at the White House, federal officials detailed an extensive set of actions dealing with a possible swine flu outbreak, and downplayed any threat to the President or his staff after a recent trip to Mexico, home to the outbreak.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the President's health was "never in any danger" after the Mexico trip, and that no staff members who had been on that trip had shown any hints of illness.

As of Sunday afternoon, there were 20 confirmed cases of swine flu in the United States, in New York, California, Texas, Kansas and Ohio.

Officials acknowledged the geographically odd nature of those five, which led acting Centers for Disease Control chief Dr. Richard Besser to warn that more cases are likely.

"The good news is that all of the individuals who have been identified as cases have recovered," said Besser, who didn't have a ready explanation for why the flu had killed people in Mexico, but not in the U.S.

"We've ramped up our surveillance around the country to try and understand better what is the scope, what is the magnitude of this outbreak around the country," Besser told reporters.

Since President Obama visited Mexico for two days earlier this month, there have obviously been questions about his own health, but officials said nothing is amiss.

The President's health was "never in any danger" according to officials, who were forced to acknowledge that Mr. Obama was out playing golf on an unusually hot Sunday in April while the briefing was ongoing.

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What others are saying

  • Swine flue
    Had the president Obama shut down the borders to begin with, there would be no outbreak in the US
  • Swine Flu in Gerald Ford's Time
    I read some time ago, that during Gerald Ford's administration, we expected to be hit hard by the swine flu. President Ford needed quite a lot of money to provide vaccine and the Democrats basically held that money hostage until many millions of dollars in unrelated social programs were added to the agreement to fund the vaccine. I wonder if they can use the Swine flu to scare us into giving the government more control over health care?
  • Proof Pigs can really fly
    Hopefully our country won't experience a severe spread of the swine flu. Hasn't Mexico delivered us enough "challenges" as it is? They continue to deliver a crushing blow to our already weakened economy with out of control illegal immigration. As if we needed any help with that. They contine to deliver our cities and towns run away crime statistics due to illegal drug traffic. Will it take a pandemic to finally force us to shut down and enforce control over our southern borders? Bush was totally weak on border control and Obama is even weaker.
    Good luck to our country.
  • When Pigs Flu
    FYI

    "...it seems a new virulent flu, which the World Health Organization is saying has 'pandemic potential,' has been possibly linked to a CAFO in Perote, Mexico owned and operated by industrial pork operator Smithfield.

    "Smithfield is the world’s largest pork producer. At the Perote, Mexico facility operated by Smithfield subsidary Granjas Carroll, 950,000 pigs were raised and sold for meat in 2008."

    http://civileats.com/2009/04/25/swine-flu-linked-to-smithfield-pig-cafo/
  • Swine Flu, "My Pet Goat", "now watch this drive"
    Now here is an interesting picture while Mexico is having its very own Stephen King moment, the President is out playing golf. When on 9/11 the President was informed of a possible attack in New York, he continued to read "My Pet Goat" to school children while he waited for an update from his staff. Bush was crucified for his perceived inaction. Meanwhile as President Obama called on his staffers to update him hourly he called on his foursome to, "Now, watch this drive". I can only wonder was Obama humming, "Baby can you dig your Man" while the Swinish Captain Trips walks across our borders on a white horse?
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