These takes are misguided/dishonest. They don’t recognize that what is historically a major strength of the US, federalism, is not conducive to effective pandemic response. Pandemics require centralized and uniform action which is infinitely more difficult in the US. https://twitter.com/BrianduNord/status/1275909369314623494

Even with the best of intentions/ability, the separation of power that is characteristic of governance in the US places major obstacles. It’s the reason China has such an advantage in dealing with the pandemic. They can quite literally impose whatever draconian measure necessary.

A more honest comparison is to evaluate Europe as a whole. There you can see a wide variety of outcomes, with each of the countries looking much more similar to our own states (including Italy and Spain when compared to NY and CA). Once you see this, these takes lose credibility.