If the current numbers hold, sometime in mid- to late-September, the United States will likely reach the horrific marker of 200,000 people dead due to the coronavirus crisis. No doubt, the media will widely report on this artificial but significant milepost. If, tragically, the trend ticks up slightly after some schools reopen in late summer and after flu season begins in October, this grim headline could appear shortly before Election Day: “COVID-19 Death Count in the US Tops a Quarter of a Million.” One puzzle is why President Donald Trump does not seem to realize that these nightmarish statistics—and the news stories they will generate—could spell doom for his reelection prospects.