There is something deeply unsettling about the way Cuomo’s handling of the epidemic has been lionized by the national media, and treated as a reality show by his brother’s network; especially when it’s viewed in tandem with attempts to delegitimize governors in other states who have competently faced down similar challenges. California’s Gavin Newsom deserves credit for pouncing early, while also crediting the work of the Trump administration. Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington was the first statewide elected executive outside of Donald Trump forced into dealing with the pandemic head on. What looked to be a spiraling disaster was quickly contained. Yet in both cases, the national New York-based media ignored them, choosing to zone in on the dangers of yokel hick states and their GOP governors, catering to a catastrophe that never actually came. Remember spring breakers all amassing on beaches and on patios?

Meanwhile, researchers believe that New York City was the epicenter for the spread throughout most of the country and that the New York subway system — far from a beacon of cleanliness at the best of times — was the largest incubator of the virus, according to the New York Times . As the virus took hold throughout the city, elected officials denounced concerns about its origins as racist and xenophobic, and encouraging their constituents to go about life as usual and attend festivals and movie theaters. As it turns out, the mayor snuffing out a groundhog was just a practice run.