Tag: anti-science Republicans

Vaccine hesitancy among lawmakers slows return to normalcy on Capitol Hill

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Lawmakers, like the rest of the country, are all eligible for the coronavirus vaccine. But President Biden‘s speech to Congress last week looked like he was addressing a group that hadn’t gotten a single shot.

With a crowd a fraction of its usual size — and those present all socially distancing and wearing masks — the speech underscored how life on Capitol Hill has been slow to return to normal and how difficult it is to persuade holdouts to get immunized.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) estimated a day after the address that about 75 percent of House members have been vaccinated, a figure unchanged since March. Continue reading.

Fauci pushes back on GOP criticisms, calling claims ‘bizarre’

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Facing criticism from several high-profile Republicans in recent weeks, the country’s top infectious-disease expert, Anthony S. Fauci, pushed back on some of the claims, calling the remarks “bizarre.”

The most recent slight came Friday from Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), who in a series of tweets urged Fauci to visit the U.S.-Mexico border, where authorities are grappling with an influx of migrants, and asked him to witness firsthand what he called the nation’s “biggest super spreader event.”

Graham claimed thousands of Central American migrants are spreading the virus while being detained in overcrowded facilities. Continue reading.

Sen. Johnson Invites Quack To Testify On Vaccines, Dangerous Virus ‘Cure’

As the world readies for the release of a coronavirus vaccine, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) invited an anti-vaccine doctor to testify in a hearing that promotes the use of a coronavirus treatment the Federal Drug Administration not only deems ineffective but also dangerous.

Dr. Jane Orient is one of four witnesses set to testify Tuesday morning at a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee that Johnson leads. She told the New York Times that she’s skeptical of the forthcoming vaccine because, among other reasons, its “effect on fertility has not been determined” — a concern that is not based on any evidence.

Orient is testifying in the second part of a hearing called by Johnson titled “Early Outpatient Treatment: An Essential Part of a COVID-19 Solution.” Orient told the Times she “intended to use her testimony to call for government guidelines informing doctors about hydroxychloroquine as a potential treatment for Covid-19 patients.” Continue reading.

Historian details how ‘anti-science’ views of white evangelicals in the South helped fuel the 2nd wave of COVID-19

AlterNet logoWhen the coronavirus pandemic was killing thousands of New York City residents in the spring, many far-right Republicans in Texas and the Deep South argued that they shouldn’t be forced to practice social distancing or wear protective face masks because of a Northeastern Corridor problem. They failed to realize that pandemics, from the Black Death in Medieval times to the Spanish flu in 1918/1919, can rapidly spread from one place to another. Historian Laura Ellyn Smith, in a blistering op-ed for the Washington Post, discusses the fact that COVID-19 has been hitting the South so hard recently — and argues that the “anti-science” views of far-right white Christian fundamentalists are partly to blame.

“After initially striking the Northeast and Pacific Northwest,” Smith explains, “COVID-19 has spread throughout the country. And now, the states with the highest new cases per capita are those across the South and Southwest. The Bible Belt — which stretches from South Carolina through the Deep South, west across Texas and Arizona — has seen high numbers of cases. And although the United States has seen cases everywhere, these states’ early reopening plans and hands-off measures — most recently, a ban by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) on local mask requirements — reflect a cultural emphasis on prioritizing freedom from government dictate and an anti-science bias rooted in the history of the region.” Continue reading.

Smith, who graduated from the University of Mississippi and now teaches politics at Canterbury Christ Church University in Kent, England, notes how far-right southerners and supporters of President Donald Trump who “have resisted even simple measures, including social distancing and the now highly politicized wearing of masks.” And she points out that in Palm Beach County, Florida, extremists claimed that proponents of mandatory mask-wearing in public places “want to throw God’s wonderful breathing system out.”

‘Hell, Hug ‘Em!’ Gov. DeSantis Dismisses Social Distancing For Elderly

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday urged people to hug the elderly despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

DeSantis said that as long as people are wearing personal protective equipment, he sees no reason not to hug people when visiting.

“Look, I’m comfortable with the PPE,” the Republican governor said. “Hell, hug ’em! I mean, come on.” He added that maintaining social distancing of six feet during visits — as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — seems unnecessary because it’s “a reminder that it’s still not normal.” Continue reading.

Lawsuit aims to block mask mandate at polling places

The lawsuit, backed by GOP legislators, is the 11th legal challenge to Gov. Tim Walz’s COVID-19 restrictions.

A group of voters backed by Republican legislators sued Gov. Tim Walz and other state and local officials Tuesday in federal court, aiming to block a face mask requirement at polling places.

Members of the Minnesota Voters Alliance and GOP lawmakers contend Walz’s mask mandate, intended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, conflicts with a longstanding state law making it a misdemeanor for someone to conceal their identity with a mask. The 1963 law grants exceptions, including masks that are part of medical treatment.

“That’s a conflict and I don’t know what to do on primary day,” said Kim Crockett, one of the Minnesotans challenging the mask requirement. Continue reading.