Covid control will make or break Biden

When there is widespread agreement on a course of action, leaders are judged on how well they carry it out. In her 2016 book, “Why Presidents Fail," my Brookings Institution colleague Elaine Kamarck shows how management failures can make or break presidencies. Jimmy Carter never recovered from the failed mission to rescue American hostages in Iran, nor did George W. Bush from his botched response to Hurricane Katrina. The implosion of the Affordable Care Act’s website significantly weakened the Obama presidency.

This is all the more important when policies affect individuals directly, because these policies inform how society perceives the competence of its institutions and leaders. Savvy politicians understand that attitudes toward government are shaped by motor-vehicle departments and Veterans Affairs hospitals. Members of Congress quickly learn that constituent services in their local offices matter at least as much as voting records. Helping constituents navigate complex bureaucracies affects not only them but the stories they tell their friends and neighbors.

You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and managing the pandemic will be the first impression President Biden makes. If he gets it right, he will strengthen his hand in dealing with a divided Congress, and he will begin the long task of rebuilding public trust and confidence in government. If his team botches the job, he will bear the brunt of public disappointment.

Mr. Biden has inherited a monumental challenge. The Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed encouraged the development of vaccines in record time, but then hit a snag in logistics. The feds have shipped vaccines more slowly than expected. Many states have been inadequately prepared to pass out the vaccines they receive. Highly publicized instances of line-jumping threaten to weaken confidence in the fairness of the process.

Some Americans, including many health-care workers, are hesitant to get vaccinated. Those who want the vaccine have struggled to find out how to obtain it, as confusing appointment websites have stumped those without tech savvy, particularly older Americans. The public has endured a lot over the past year and is increasingly impatient; waiting is especially hard when what you want is barely out of reach.

On the other hand, Mr. Biden has a foundation he can build on. Most Americans agree that a full return to normal economic and social life is impossible until Americans are confident that they are protected against Covid-19. Despite some understandable but overwrought fears about the safety of newly authorized vaccines, there is broad support for mass inoculations. Republicans and Democrats may not agree about how much money to spend, but serious requests for more assistance from states, localities and public health agencies are likely to be received favorably.

To meet the moment, Mr. Biden faces three crucial management tasks. First, he must establish a clear chain of command within his administration. His team must know who is empowered to speak and act on the president’s behalf. His point person must organize a whole-of-government team, give each member specific responsibilities, and monitor progress constantly.

Second, Mr. Biden must establish realistic goals—and meet them. For example, he has publicly pledged 100 million inoculations in his first 100 days. Whether or not this promise was wise, it is too late to pull it back. His team must make it happen.

Third, he must rebuild working relationships between the federal government and the states. There should be a hot line connecting the White House with the nation’s governors. President Biden should talk with the leaders of the National Governors Association daily and ask them to serve as conduits between the states and the White House for especially urgent requests from individual governors.

As anyone who has ever been trapped in an airport understands, not knowing why your plane is delayed or how long you will have to wait can be harder to take than the delay itself. Mr. Biden or his team should create a public dashboard of important production and distribution metrics and communicate specific information to the country on a regular basis. If there are glitches in the vaccine production line, tell us. If a corporation or government agency isn’t doing its job, level with us and take responsibility for fixing it. If a state isn’t doing its fair share and quiet persuasion fails, call out its leaders. Treat Americans as adults who can stand the truth.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.