Coronavirus pandemic
The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Opinion It’s now or never for the U.S. if it hopes to keep coronavirus from burning out of control

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March 9, 2020 at 5:04 p.m. EDT
An empty playground outside Achievement First charter school in Providence, R.I., on March 7. (David Goldman/AP)

This column has been updated.

Tom Bossert served as homeland security adviser to President Trump from 2017 to 2018.

The first phase of the coronavirus outbreak was a domestic challenge for China and a border containment one for the United States and others. Now we are in the second phase: community mitigation. Math and history must guide our next steps.