During the month of March, I marveled that people from blue and red states were cooperating to address the COVID-19 coronavirus. Physical distancing. Wearing masks. Staying at home most of the time. Volunteering to support others. Adjusting to zooming and home schooling. Slowing down while grieving.

This comfort came to an abrupt end a little after eleven AM on Thursday, April 2, while listening to National Public Radio journalist Sasha-Ann Simons interviewing Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson (1). A highly condensed version of the interview follows:

Governor Hutchinson: Thanks for having me on your show after which he listed all of the best practices he had put in place to combat the virus.

SAS: Why not ask people to shelter in place?

The governor argued that a “targeted approach” — adding restrictions when needed — is better than a shelter-in-place order.)

SAS: Why not order people to stay at home?

The governor argued that states with stay-at-home orders have so many exceptions that these orders are moot.)

SAS: But why not order people to stay at home?

The Governor: You haven’t heard a word I’ve said.

Disgusted, I changed stations, reflecting that this was another example of people talking past each other, and remembering Dr. Kenneth Sole’s admonition that contentious conversations go awry when people fail to use both the thoughts and feelings “channels” (2). In this case, I thought, both people ignored the feelings of contempt and distrust festering just below the surface making it harder to see the common ground between the talk show host and the governor.

President Trump has magnified our divisions, so it shouldn’t be surprising that a CBS News/YouGov poll conducted in late March reported that ninety percent of Republicans said that the president was the most reliable source of information concerning the virus, compared to fourteen percent of Democrats. While both groups trusted medical professionals, twelve percent of Republicans trusted the media, compared to seventy-two percent of Democrats.

Other factors contribute to this lack of trust. The population density of blue areas makes it easier for the COVID-19 virus to spread, and the anti-Trump talking heads have focused on the struggles to combat the virus, praising New York governor Andrew Cuomo’s daily press briefings while trashing the president’s briefings. These talking heads highlight death counts while claiming that red states are undercounting fatalities and ignoring dangers of red state hot spots. Pro-Trump talking heads praise the president’s leadership battling the Wuhan virus while downplaying blue state challenges, claiming that blue state death counts are exaggerated. “It’s past time to open the country for business!” they trumpet.

It gets worse. Anti-Trump talking heads are highlighting the cloak-and-dagger steps that hospital officials and governors of Massachusetts and Maryland have taken to prevent medical supplies they have purchased from being hijacked by federal government officials, perhaps so that President Trump can reward his friends. “Blame China!” counter the pro-Trump talking heads.

Despite these rhetorical skirmishes, most people seem nervously eager to begin opening our country’s door a little wider for business while still physical distancing, staying close to home, and supporting others. We seem to accept that the journey will be winding and confusing. Each of us is trying to find a balance between risk and safety. We yearn for a vaccine and/or a cure.

We can do more. We can remember that we are a mixture of city, suburbs, and rural, and that the virus interacts with each differently. We can show a lot more empathy to those who think and feel differently than we do. We can try to accept that people will die because of the virus throughout this reopening to make it less likely that others will die due to the economic slowdown while speeding up herd immunity. We can embrace federalism: the idea that power should be given to those closest to the issue so that local strengths and quirks can contribute to addressing challenges, with the federal government providing resources and guidance as needed. We can acknowledge that this approach is less effective when half of us distrust — even fear — the president.

We should remember that distrust, competing narratives, threats, and battles over supplies, especially when combined with pandemic uncertainties, will fire up those who agree and disagree.

And that sometimes fire brings forth unpredictable flashes.

That occasionally slip-slide into war.

It’s happened before.

(1) To listen to the interview in question, please visit

Coronavirus: When Your State Doesn’t Shelter In Place

(2) For more information about communication channels, please visit

Channeling