Coronavirus Criminals and Pandemic Profiteers: Accountability for Those Who Caused the Crisis

In Coronavirus Criminals and Pandemic Profiteers: Accountability for Those Who Caused the Crisis (2022), journalist John Nichols critiques individuals and institutions that profited from the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing particularly on government officials and multinational corporations. Nichols critiques the Trump administration’s lack of leadership and accountability, referring to Trump as a “sociopathic president” (Nichols 6) during the initial wave of the pandemic, which led to numerous avoidable deaths. He connects the attitudes that contributed to Trump’s rise with the mishandling of the crisis, highlighting a political system that prioritizes elites and shows little regard for public welfare. Nichols also emphasizes the role of labor movements and unions, framing essential workers as those most vulnerable to the dangers of inadequate safety measures under an administration that failed to act until the death toll surpassed 100,000 in May 2020. Through Coronavirus Criminals, Nichols demonstrates the clear link between governmental failures and the devastating outcomes of the pandemic, advocating for accountability and the replacement of corrupt officials with competent leadership to address systemic flaws within the American political structure.