The Coup-o-meter has moved up to reflect the precariousness of the current situation. The danger of a coup has increased in the past few hours as violent protestors breached the Capitol building and disrupted the normal processes of a transition of power.
We continue to monitor the situation. Specifically, we are looking for whether protestors are successful in continuing their disruption and what actions members of the GOP take in response to these protests. Momentum has not shifted, but violence can create opportunities, and the question at this point is how will officials and other actors respond to this threat.
To learn more about potential for a coup, and how to prepare and respond to an attempted coup, see ChooseDemocracyBenicia.org.
The Coup-a-meter measures a specific kind of danger: how close we are to an active coup. Just as a speedometer cannot tell you the temperature, right now the Coup-o-meter is not the best way to gauge the current threat to our democracy.
It is true that the President is actively working to overturn the 2020 election results. Trump’s actions on his call with Georgia Secretary of State Raffensperger were an illegal attempt to defraud the citizens of Georgia and deprive them of their votes. Trump has stated his intention to overturn election results that were not in his favor since before the election and he continues to look for collaborators who will help him do so. For Republicans, the challenge over the past two months has been finding ways to appear as if they are moving toward overturning the election without ever actually reaching that point. To do so, they have relied on lawsuits, recounts, and audits that they knew would fail but which would put off the inevitable: having to tell Trump that he lost the November election.
Wednesday, Republicans will interrupt the ceremonial electoral vote count. Doing so will have as much effect on the transition to a Biden administration as interrupting his inauguration on January 20th would have: none. But the point of this exercise is not to stop the transition, it is to put off the day when Trump turns on the members of his own party.
But if Trump is attempting to overturn the election, why not call this a coup? This is not a semantic argument: Tactics that are appropriate for one situation are often counterproductive in another. A coup is a rapid seizure of power that builds momentum and requires an immediate and broad response to overturn it. A general strike and mass demonstrations have proven to be effective tactics when fighting a coup, which is why our friends at Choose Democracy spent weeks training thousands of people around the country in these methods. But because this is not a coup, employing these tactics could backfire. If Trump has signaled anything in the past few months, it is that he is itching for a fight. Large street battles between those supporting and opposing Trump might well be the one thing that would justify domestic use of the military. Unlike the theatrics being employed by Republicans in Congress, military action could interrupt the peaceful transition of power.
There are good reasons not to be distracted by the current circus. The true goals of the Republican leadership are the same as they were last year and the year before that: depriving citizens of their right to vote. The current maelstrom of misinformation created by Trump will be put to use by Republicans in the coming months to limit early and mail-in voting, purge voter rolls, and enact voter ID laws. These are the threats to democracy that we face, and we should not let the interruption of ceremonies distract us from them.
Have you heard this before? Over and over and over – we’re in trouble, folks. Stay home!
By Roger Straw, January 5, 2021 [Sources: see below.]
Tuesday, January 5: 270 new Solano cases overnight, 2 new deaths. Since last Feb: 21,223 cases, over 750 hospitalized, 102 deaths.Compare previous report, Monday, Jan. 4:Summary
Solano County reported 270 new cases overnight. In just the last 14 days, Solano has seen an increase of 4,655 new cases. We’re averaging 333 (!) new cases every day! Total of 21,223 cases since the outbreak started. >>Vacaville has added 1,657 new cases in the last 2 weeks, over 118 per day!(Compare Vacaville in November: total of 761 cases over 30 days, averaging 26 per day.)Something is going on in Vacaville!
Deaths – 2 new deaths reported today, one aged 50-64 and one over 65, a total of 102 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
Active cases – Solano reported 966 more active cases today for a total of 2,605 active cases. Compare: Solano’s average number of Active Cases during October was 284, average in November was 650 – and TODAY we are at 2,605! Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons? Who knows? To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
Hospitalizations – Today, Solano reported 4 fewer CURRENTLY hospitalized persons, total of 160. Among the age groups, the County reported no new hospitalizations, for a total of 757 persons hospitalized since the outbreak began. But… These numbers are surely meaningless; read on… >>In a December 31 Fairfield Daily Republic article, reporter Todd Hanson wrote, “Since the start of the pandemic, and as of Wednesday [Dec. 30], 9,486 residents have been hospitalized.” This startling number isfar and away above the number of residents hospitalized as indicated in the count of age group hospitalizations, and not available anywhere on the County’s COVID-19 dashboard.Asked about his source, Hanson replied that Solano Public Health “had to do a little research on my behalf.” It would be good if the County could add Total Hospitalized to its daily Dashboard update. [For the numbers used in my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below. For COVID19-CA.GOV numbers, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.]
Positive Test Rate – ALARMINGLY HIGH SOLANO TEST RATE OF 26.5% – VIRUS SPREADING LIKE WILDFIRE, STAY HOME!
Solano County reported our 7-day average positive test rate today at an alarming rate of 26.5%, down from yesterday’s record high rate of 30.9%, and still over 3 times the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%. Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus. The much lower and more stable California 7-day average test rate was up from yesterday’s 11.6% to 13.6% today. (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results. However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results. The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.)
By Age Group – Holiday surge upon holiday surge – in all age groups
Youth 17 and under – 41 new cases today, total of 2,357 cases, representing 11.1% of the 21,223 total cases. No new hospitalizations reported today among this age group, total of 17 since the outbreak began. Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group. But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued at over 11% since September 30. Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11% may seem low. The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 17 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
Persons 18-49 years of age – 125 new cases today, total of 11,980 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents 56.5% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups. The County reported 1 fewer (!?) hospitalization among persons in this age group today. A total of 237 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. Solano recorded no new deaths in this young group today, total of 7 deaths. Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders. I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
Persons 50-64 years of age – 64 new cases today, total of 4,426 cases. This age group represents 20.9% of the 21,223 total cases. The County reported 1 new hospitalization among persons in this age group today. A total of 209 are reported to have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. 1 new death were reported in this age group today, a total of 18 deaths.
Persons 65 years or older – 40 new cases today, total of 2,451, representing 11.6% of Solano’s 21,223total cases. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today. A total of 294 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. 1 new death was reported in this age group today. A total of 77 of our elders have died of COVID, accounting for 75.5%of Solano’s 102 total deaths.
Testing – Solano reports today that a 173,353 unduplicated residents have now been tested for COVID-19 since the outbreak began, and that a total of 225,052 tests have been performed on Solano residents. Thus, just nearly 52,000 tests have been administered on residents who had been previously tested. 38.7% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.
City Data
Benicia added 9 new cases today, total of 574 cases since the outbreak began.
Dixon added 14 new cases today, total of 1325 cases.
Fairfield added 63 new cases today, total of 5,966 cases.
Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 194 cases.
Suisun City added 12 new cases today, total of 1,473 cases.
Vacaville added 117 (!) new cases today, total of 5,479 cases.
Vallejoadded 53 new cases today, total of 6,145 cases.
Unincorporated areasadded 1 new case today, total of 66 cases.
Race / Ethnicity
The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics. This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans. Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.
Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 18% of deaths.
Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 16% of hospitalizations, and 20% of deaths.
Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 15% of cases, 24% of hospitalizations, and 18% of deaths.
White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 29% of cases, 29% of hospitalizations and 33% of deaths.
[Editor: Note later correction, highlighted in paragraph 12 below. – R.S.]
Benicia Raley’s Supermarkets confirms COVID-19 case after holding maskless pot luck
Vallejo Times Herald, By Katy St. Clair, January 4, 2021
Raley’s Benicia holiday party, maskless employees, not socially distanced (Source: Raley’s Benicia Facebook, December 24, 2020 – posted here by the Benicia Independent, not Vallejo Times-Herald)
A memo sent to Raley’s Supermarkets staff at the Benicia branch on Sunday confirms that an employee has been diagnosed with COVID-19.
The store held an on-site pot luck holiday party on Dec. 24 in which several employees were pictured without masks.
“This is notice that an individual who was present at Raley’s 343 at 890 Southampton Rd., Benicia, CA, has tested positive for COVID-19,” the memo states. “The individual was last at the worksite on 12/24/20 and is currently self-isolating.”
The store received criticism after after pictures were posted to social media of the holiday pot luck which showed attendees sitting closely at tables without wearing masks.
An employee who spoke to the Times-Herald on condition of anonymity said that the person diagnosed with COVID-19 is “very ill” and was present at the event.
In the same memo, Raley’s Supermarkets said that it notified affected team members and carried out contact tracing for anyone who had been within 6 feet of the individual for longer than 15 minutes at a time. The store also said it would be contacting any vendors that had contact with the individual. In addition, the memo states that the store “performed necessary cleaning and disinfecting of the work areas and surfaces along the individual’s path of travel.”
Chelsea Minor, a spokesperson for Raley’s Supermarkets, said that the company acknowledges that the store did not follow procedure when it allowed a maskless potluck.
“We have taken action and coached appropriately,” she said.
A new California law went into effect on Jan. 1 that requires businesses to report to the county public health department if three or more people are diagnosed with COVID-19 within a 14-day period. It also requires employers to notify employees within one day of discovering that an employee has tested positive.
An employee told the Times-Herald on Dec. 31 that the COVID-19-infected employee had been at the holiday party and had tested positive several days before the store notified staff.
“It’s hard to believe that none of the managers knew what I knew,” the individual said.
According to the text of the law, AB 685, businesses were not legally obligated to notify staff or the public of COVID-19 infections prior to this year. The bill’s text states, “Reporting among workplaces in 2020 lacked “clarity as to an employer’s reporting requirements, including their own workforce. This deficiency has led to workers and members of the public living in fear for their own safety, unaware of where outbreaks may already be occurring.”
Raley’s Benicia holiday party, employees not socially distanced (Source: Raley’s Benicia Facebook, December 24, 2020 – posted here by the Benicia Independent, not Vallejo Times-Herald)
The Raley’s employee alleges that a manager spoke to them in confidence about at least 20 people at the Benicia Raley’s Supermarkets branch being diagnosed with COVID-19 since March of 2019.
Though Raley’s stated that people near the affected person were being isolated, an employee told the Times-Herald that two people who were seated near the infected person in the pot luck pictures remained on the job on Monday. It is not known how long those employees were exposed.
“They all sat back there for a long time,” said the employee. “It was over 15 minutes for sure. Some spent their whole lunch hour back there.”
Minor said that Raley’s has completed its initial screening process to see who had been exposed to the employee but that the process is ongoing.
“We are acting on that information that we have,” she said. “(Employees) should talk to their team leader and they should report it. And if they are in a predicament and feel like they could be exposed, they should report it.”
Word about the pot luck and reports of COVID-19 infections have prompted both the City of Benicia and Solano Public Health to investigate the store.
Calls to the public information officers at the public health department and county were not returned.
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