In the early days of what became a historic public health crisis, the novel coronavirus was, in the lexicon of U.S. politics, a “blue state” problem - centered in East and West Coast areas, particularly New York and New Jersey, that voted against President Donald Trump in 2016. It remained so for weeks, and that fact defined what became battle lines between mask wearers and skeptics, and between those convinced restrictions on commerce were needed to save lives versus those who wanted less government intervention. Now, though, it is squarely a “Trump country” issue.