As the spread of novel coronavirus grows in the United States, many states find themselves

in need of much more medical equipment, things like ventilators and hospital beds, but also

protective equipment for workers like masks and gloves.

Yet for most states, getting that equipment has not been easy.

Requests have begun to outweigh supply, and many states complain there's a lack of guidance

about how they can secure this life-saving supplies.

Things are making increasingly frantic requests to the Federal Emergency Management Agency

or FEMA for materials.

State and congressional leaders are flooding FEMA with calls seeking clarity about how resources

will be allocated.

Several calls have been made straight to the president himself, and some governors seem

to have better luck on those calls than others.

While some states like Oklahoma and Kentucky have received more of some equipment than they

even requested, others like Illinois, Massachusetts, and Maine have secured only a fraction

of their requests.

This disparity has led many state officials to raise the question of whether Republican

states are receiving more favorable treatment from the federal government during this crisis.

And while there's no direct evidence that that's the case, President Trump has contributed

to a sense that politics could be a factor.

Specifically, Trump has publicly attacked Democratic governors who criticize his handling

of the public health crisis.

So is there a political bias in who gets resources now?

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