Dear Editor,
On Aug. 13, 2020, less than 24 hours after the official Democratic presidential ticket was announced, the Biden/Harris campaign released a comprehensive 23-point national plan for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.
In addition to the 23-point plan, there was an additional section dealing with how to assist and get funding to states and local governments. Again, in less than 24 hours the Democratic ticket had a COVID-19 plan.
Consider the alternative: The Trump Administration has had at least seven months, possibly eight or nine months to deal with the pandemic, but instead, this is the plan we get from Trump.
A.) Trump advised the public to drink bleach, ingest or inject Lysol or disinfectant.
B.) Trump advised the public to take hydroxychloroquine, a medication that has been deemed ineffective by the medical community against COVID-19 and in some cases has been fatal.
C.) Trump demanded that all testing should stop so the number of cases would go down. (Really? Just because you don’t test doesn’t mean the virus is no longer there. Surely, you do not need a medical degree to figure this out.) Finally, point:
D.) Trump has repeatedly advised the public to ignore the recommendations of the CDC, Dr. Fauci and medical professionals and it took over four months for Trump to lead by example and wear a mask in public.
Now, for all of you about to scream “fake liberal news” at me for sharing Trump’s COVID-19 “plan”, I did not get any of that information from the news.
In fact, points A-D all came from Trump’s mouth at his COVID-19 press briefings.
Trump says of the pandemic: “It is what it is.” COVID-19 is what it is because of Trump’s dithering, deflection, delaying, denying, golfing and tweeting. COVID-19 is what it is because of Trump’s gross negligence and his complete and utter incompetence. And if you are following his lead you are recklessly putting the lives of your family and fellow Americans in harm’s way.
And way too many Republican congressmen, senators, governors, state legislators and mayors are doing just that — putting their own citizens at risk by actively supporting Trump’s actions or staying silent. The silence is deafening.
Viruses are interesting agents. They don’t see state lines. They don’t see red or blue states. They don’t see Democrat or Republican regions, cities or towns. They don’t see black, brown or white skin, but they do see opportunity. Everytime you refuse to wear a mask, everytime you refuse social distancing, everytime you gather in large groups at what should be restricted areas you are giving COVID-19 the opportunity to grow and thrive. COVID-19 is not a partisan issue.
The fact that Trump and the GOP have politicized COVID-19 and pitted American against American into polarizing “wear masks/re-fuse to wear masks” camps is unconscionable.
Trump and the GOP will tell you that it is the Democrats that are politicizing this COVID-19 pandemic but that is not true. The Democrats are trying to get the truth out about how serious and deadly this pandemic really is. It’s not an accident that Democratically-held areas are faring better during this pandemic, although it didn’t appear that way in the beginning. And of course, there will be pockets of exceptions to this statement.
Speaking of politicizing, Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate Majority Leader has been holding back a COVID-19 bill since May. Congress has already passed that bill and it would give monetary relief to millions of Americans hurt by the pandemic.
Why is McConnell holding it up? He wants a clause in it that would protect corporations from being sued by disgruntled employees from being forced back to work in unsafe conditions that expose them to COVID-19.
Doesn’t the GOP claim to be the party that champions the American worker? Once again, they prove they champion corporations over the average American worker.
The Republican party also claims to be the party that values the sanctity of life. The pandemic has brought to light what a sham this claim is. If Republicans truly believed in the sanctity of life they would not be telling their members to gather in large groups, refuse to social distance and refuse to wear masks. If Republicans believed in the sanctity of life they would not have shown up for Trump’s Tulsa rally or the Mt. Rushmore July 4th address.
I watched in horror as Trump employees removed signs in the Tulsa arena for social distancing. And then my horror doubled when Trump supporters showed up in droves without masks.
What kind of man is willing to put his own supporters in danger for political gain? What kind of man goads his supporters in participating in unsafe actions?
There was even the Republican legislator from Texas who stated that the elderly should sacrifice themselves to COVID-19 to save the economy. Let that sink in for a moment and think of the gravity of this comment.
A Republican legislator said publicly that the economy i.e. making money is more important than human life — especially if you’re elderly. To me, this doesn’t sound like a member of a political party that values human life.
So my question to Trump supporters is this — what’s your number? How many Americans have to die from COVID-19 before you cross the acceptable threshold for the “sanctity of life?”
It appears right now to be 170,000. What’s your number? Do 180,000 people need to die? 200,000? 500,000? Do a million people have to die before you admit that the Trump Administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic is unacceptable?
Every 80 seconds an American citizen dies from COVID-19. What’s your number? We have already surpassed threefold the number of Americans who died in the Vietnam conflict. What’s your number? We are at 56 times the number of Americans who died in the 9-11 terrorist attack.
What’s your number? Or does the number really not matter? As long as it happens somewhere out there and doesn’t touch you it’s not real, right?
What’s your number? Does it have to get personal? Does it have to come after you and your family before you will take it seriously?
If Trump wins another term and we continue with this state by state, locale by locale response to COVID-19 rather than a clear, coherent national response, with bi-partisan support, it will get personal for all of us. In a year, will all of us know someone who died from COVID-19? I’m not willing to take that chance.
Incidentally, my number is zero. It is unacceptable for even one person to die from a botched response to this pandemic.
As soon as Kamala Harris was announced as Joe Biden’s running mate, Trump sent out a tweet about how phony she is. What is it about Kamala that makes her appear phony to Trump? Is it her distinguished 30-year career as a public servant? Is it her education? Is it her expertise and experience? Is it her intellect?
What is phony? Is Trump phony when he holds a cheat sheet with words of empathy on it while addressing the traumatized students of a school shooting because he is incapable of feeling the empathy, let alone uttering any words of empathy of his own volition?
Is Trump phony when he holds an upside down Bible as a prop for a photo op while standing in front of a church sign that says “All are Welcome”, when we know for a fact that in Trump’s America all are not welcome?
Is Trump phony when he uses a military tank as a backdrop for his 2019 4th of July speech when he, himself is a five-time draft dodger?
Is Trump a phony when he refers to military generals as “my generals” but currently dismisses the intelligence briefings coming from his own administration that Russia has set bounties on the heads of American soldiers?
Is Trump phony when he uses 50 shades of orange spray-on tan?
The real phony here is the washed-up, has-been, erratic, reality show TV personality masquerading as the president of the United States. The only thing presidential about Trump is his current residence is 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
This November, I am voting for the party and ticket that values the sanctity of human life. I am voting for the Biden/Harris ticket. The Democratic party doesn’t have to say they are the party that values human life, I have seen it clearly in their actions during this horrible pandemic.
Everytime the party encourages you to follow the directions of the CDC, scientists and the medical professionals they are proving they are the party of life.
Every time the Democrats speak out against those who deny science, they are proving they are the party of life. Everytime the Democrats speak out against those who ignore safety precautions and guidelines, they are proving they are the party of life. Pro-mask is pro-life.
The choice is simple. Do you vote for the ticket that has a 23-point plan for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic or do you vote for the ticket that tells you to drink bleach?
Bridgett Armentrout-Edwards
Sherry May Street, Covington
The Virginian Review has been serving Covington, Clifton Forge, Alleghany County and Bath County since 1914.
