The coronavirus crash has turned the fact that we don't make anything in America anymore from a topic for philosophical and political debate into a crisis in our hospitals causing people to die and endangering our frontline health care workers.

Even worse, there's nothing to catch us as and after we fall, because we don't have a manufacturing base to fall back on like we did the last time a crisis like this happened-in the late 1930s.

Most of our medical supplies and prescription drugs now come from China, for example, and that's producing a crisis in our hospitals because China isn't exporting N95 masks, ventilators and respirators like they were just six months ago.

Back in the day, the British knew that manufacturing was the core strength of a nation, which is why they forbade the colonists in 1770 from manufacturing most items that could be imported from Britain, and famously forbade the good people of India from even turning their own cotton into cloth and clothing (thus Gandhi's spinning wheel as a logo for protest).

Read more here.

-Thom

Friday's Daily Stack

Article: "Q&A: A search for answers in 17-year-old boy's death that may be linked to coronavirus" by Richard Winton.

Article: "Coronavirus: 16-year-old girl becomes France's youngest victim after contracting COVID-19" by Matilda Long.

Video: Videos for Cats to Watch - 8 Hour Bird Bonanza.

Article: "Portland strip club forced to close, so dancers now do delivery" by Samantha Swindler.

Article: "Trump didn't consult his whole task force before releasing plan to ease social distancing in 'low-risk' counties: report" by Matthew Chapman.

Article: "Dr. Birx: Coronavirus Data Doesn't Match The Doomsday Media Predictions" by Ian Schwartz.

Article: "As Trump accuses governors of wanting too many ventilators, the real-life situation is terrifying" by Mark Sumner.

Article: "Sanjay Gupta Says 128,000 Could Die in Two Weeks: Trump Is Still Behind the Curve" by Jason Miciak.

Article: "Analysis: The 30 most outrageous lines from Donald Trump's interview with Sean Hannity" by Chris Cillizza.

Article: "Jared Kushner was put in charge of providing ventilators, and he's already blown it" by Dartagnan.

Article: "After Considering $1 Billion Price Tag for Ventilators, White House Has Second Thoughts" by David E. Sanger, Maggie Haberman and Zolan Kanno-Youngs.

Article: "Trump orders GM to make ventilators, without contract, at someone else's factory, by tweet" by Mark Sumner.

Tweet: "General Motors MUST immediately open their stupidly abandoned Lordstown plant in Ohio, or some other plant, and START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!!!!!! FORD, GET GOING ON VENTILATORS, FAST!!!!!! @GeneralMotors @Ford" by Donald J. Trump.

Video: Watch live: New York Gov. Cuomo holds a press briefing on the coronavirus pandemic 03/27/20.

Article: "Trump Says He Has A "Woman Governor" Problem. That Woman Is Gretchen Whitmer." by Erin Corbett.

Article: "Trump Lashes Out At Washington, Michigan Governors For Pandemic Response: 'We Don't Like To See The Complaints'" by Neer Varshney.

Article: "US Coronavirus Death Tolls Tops 1,000" by AP.

Article: "Dr. Sanjay Gupta's coronavirus podcast for March 26: Saving lives or saving the economy" by CNN.

Article: "Why Trump's new CDC director is an abysmal choice" by WTVA.

Video: Bush: "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job".

Article: "EXCLUSIVE: 'Gift from God' coronavirus 'cure' touted by Donald Trump is promoted by a FAKE Stanford University 'researcher' who is actually a cryptocurrency-hustling Long Island lawyer whose bogus science paper was removed by Google" by Daniel Bates.

Article: "Fox News sneered at coronavirus, but Rupert Murdoch isn't taking chances with his own health" by Laura Clawson.

Article: ""Furious" at federal lag in COVID-19 response, Colorado governor announces new restrictions & task force" by KMGH.

Article: "Rep. Massie, opponent of $2.2 trillion spending bill, forces House colleagues back to D.C. for vote" by Mike DeBonis.

Video: "Reagan: Government is not the solution to our problem government IS the problem".

Article: "E.P.A., Citing Coronavirus, Drastically Relaxes Rules for Polluters" by Lisa Friedman.

Hour Two: Issues of the Day
- Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, U.S. Congressmember (D-WA, 7th District) & Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus / Senior Whip-Democratic Caucus & serves on multiple committees including the House Budget Committee & the House Judiciary Committee

Article: "Pelosi forecasts House OK of Senate's $2.2T virus aid plan" by Andrew Taylor and Alan Fram.

Article: "Over 600 New Coronavirus Cases Confirmed In WA; 15 More Deaths" by Lucas Combos.

Article: "Coronavirus Relief Package: House Passes $2.2 Trillion COVID-19 Stimulus, Sends Bill To Trump" by Marcy Kreiter.

Tweet: "These are the items included in the stimulus bill:
$75 mill for public television/radio
$25 mil for the Kennedy Center
$75 mil for the Natl Endowment for the Arts
$75 mill for the Natl Endowment for the Humanities
How many more people could have been helped with this money?" by Nikki Haley.

Article: "Coronavirus Stimulus Offered By House Financial Services Committee Creates New Digital Dollar" by Jason Brett.

Bill: "H.R.1384 - Medicare for All Act of 2019" by Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7].

Article: "Trump signed the Defense Production Act 'in case we need it.' But what is it?" by Libby Cathey and Jack Arnholz.

Article: "Governors complain of 'disgusting' bidding war between states and the federal government for medical supplies as it's revealed surgical masks that cost 85 cents before the coronavirus pandemic are now being sold for $7 EACH" by Jennifer Smith.

Tweet: "1/ Dear airlines, hotel chains, banks, and other industries who are begging Donald Trump and Congress for bail outs. Get in the fucking line. Most of you didn't even pay taxes last year. The front of the line this time needs to be people with medical and student debt..." by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Trump camp threatens local TV stations over Democratic ad" by AP.

Video: Exponential Threat.

Article: "Michigan governor says vendors 'being told not to send stuff' to her state - after Trump bashed her" by Brad Reed.

Article: "Severe acute respiratory syndrome" (SARS) by Wikipedia.

Article: "Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS)" by Wikipedia.

Article: "China says it will ban the trade in wild animals, like bats, believed to be behind the Wuhan coronavirus, and tighten supervision on 'wet markets'" by Lauren Frias.

Article: "China's cruel wet markets that caused coronavirus and brought the world to its knees should be banned" by Dan Wootton.

Bill: "H.R.3472 - College for All Act of 2019" by Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7].

Bill: "H.R.3448 - Student Debt Cancellation Act of 2019" by Rep. Omar, Ilhan [D-MN-5].

Article: "The history of the GI Bill" by Ryan Katz.

Article: "'We are the laughingstock of the country,' Mississippi mayor laments after governor's deadly order" by Laura Clawson.

Article: "Fauci: 'If it looks like you're overreacting, you're probably doing the right thing'" by Zack Budryk.

Article: "Pentagon to deploy field hospitals to New York, Seattle" by Ellen Mitchell.

Article: "Fact Check: Has Trump declared bankruptcy four or six times?" by Michelle Lee.

Article: "Warnings to Rice outlined" by Conor O'Clery.

Article: "Maps And Charts Of Iraqi Oil Fields" by Dick Cheney.

Article: "People With Intellectual Disabilities May Be Denied Lifesaving Care Under These Plans as Coronavirus Spreads" by Amy Silverman.

Article: "Coronavirus Florida: Order Florida to shelter in place, Democrats urge DeSantis" by Wayne Washington.

Article: "Financial crisis of 2007-08" by Wikipedia.

Article: "Coronavirus Crash: Worse Than Great Depression?" by Thom Hartman.

Article: "Passover" by Wikipedia.

Article: "25th Amendment" (presidential succession)

Tweet: "@GovWhitmer said this morning on @WWJ950 that vendors "are now being told not to send stuff here to Michigan. It's really concerning. I reached out to the White House last night, ironically at the same time" he was on @FoxNews bashing her. "We need help..."" by Chad Livengood.

Tweet: "This is how this psychopath in the White House is killing American citizens by denying life-saving equipment to states whose governors he doesn't like. This is obscene, criminal, and, if there is a hell, DT and his sycophants are going to burn there for all eternity. Deservedly." by Thom Hartmann.

Article: "Could a 'Draft Cuomo' Movement Be in the Democrats' Future?" by John Fund.

Article: "Gold standard" by Wikipedia.

Article: "'Nothing set in stone' for stay-at-home order as Illinois tallies 8 more deaths, Pritzker says" by Tina Sfondeles.

Tweet: "'Coronavirus Determined To Strike Inside U.S.'" by Will Bunch.

Article: "The Trump Taj Mahal casino sold for 4 cents on the dollar - here's how Trump bankrupted it twice" by Linette Lopez.

Article: "Two Costa cruise ships to anchor with sick crew in Miami for 'life-critical' care" by Morgan Hines.

Article: "True Reason Why Germany Has Lowest Coronavirus Deaths vs. Italy, France, USA" by Arthur Villasanta.

Article: "Warmer Weather May Slow, but Not Halt, Coronavirus" by Knvul Sheikh and Ernesto Londoño.

Article: "Will warm weather really kill off Covid-19?" by Richard Gray.

Coming up Monday on The Thom Hartmann Program, 12-3pm ET

Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA, 17th District) will be here to talk issues of the day and take your calls.

And, the best of the rest of the news along with your calls right here on...

The Thom Hartmann Program, Occupying The Media 3 hours a day 5 days a week for "we the people"

And don't forget...Democracy is NOT a spectator sport...it begins with you...

Is There Any Difference Between Mob Rule & Democracy?

Stimulus Package - Too Little, Too Late (w/ Richard Wolff)