All this makes it patently clear: 

American leadership in the fields of science and technology is coming to an end. We had a good run, bringing many important advances, such as the vaccines for polio and COVID-19, to the world, not to mention prosperity to American businesses. But the demise of our scientific progress and influence didn’t begin with Donald Trump or Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Their actions are the natural consequence of a concerted effort begun long ago by a group of people, and a political party, who decided that supporting reason and rationale were not in our national interest. 

You have to wonder if any of them saw this coming.

-Heather Digby Parton in Salon.com