That's a common refrain and the gist of the article. But it's helpful to zoom out.
At the end of WWII, the US stood as the only intact industrial producer. It parleyed this win into a decades-long economic/military/political advantage. Through a collection of unsavory attitudes, the country began to think of itself as different in some magical way. The reverence toward WWII as the last "good" war has kept the focus on winning WWIII for over 70 years. The belief that somehow we're special has made it impossible to look at actually solving domestic problems or even act internationally.
This mix fed directly into a world view in which problems come from abroad. You see it with The Wall and immigration policy. You see it with the focus on foreign election interference. When there's a problem, its source more likely than not falls outside US borders.
The marginalization we see with CDC can be found in a wide range of American institutions: the military; the space program; regulatory agencies including FDA, FAA, and EPA; the educational system; Congress; the White House; even recently agriculture.
The failure of these institutions, combined with exceptionalism borne of a military victory 75 years ago, has led to a broad abdication of responsibility.
You can see this in how the US spends money. Consider the US Federal budget. Over 85% of expenditures fall into three categories: benefits/entitlements; military; and interest payments, in that order.
https://www.nationalpriorities.org/budget-basics/federal-bud...
This has been a bipartisan effort that predates 2016 by decades. The latest incarnation is just one station on a very long railroad.