Democratic senator says 'it seems completely unclear' what department is in charge of the federal coronavirus response

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) doesn't know what to make of the Trump administration's response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, he told Rolling Stone.Murphy has made it clear — with some colorful language — that he and his staff are struggling to understand the strategy for the production and distribution of medical supplies during the crisis. He's not even sure who's actually in charge.The senator told Rolling Stone he asked the White House for a call with the federal agency leading the supply charge, figuring he'd speak to either the Federal Emergency Management Agency or maybe President Trump's trade adviser Peter Navarro who was appointed to coordinate the national Defense Production Act policy. He wound up being connected with the Pentagon. Murphy wasn't insinuating the Defense Department was unqualified; he was more struck by the apparent disorganization."I walked away from that conversation scratching my head, like 'Who's in charge?'," he said. "DOD clearly has expertise, but it seems completely unclear whether the White House is in charge, DOD is in charge, FEMA is in charge or [the Department of Health and Human Services] is in charge." Read more at Rolling Stone.More stories from theweek.com Trump adviser Peter Navarro made a bad bet 60 Minutes didn't cover pandemic preparedness under Obama Trump might fire the one person in the White House who knows what he's doing Bats probably aren't more likely to spread viruses to humans than other animals, study suggests

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