White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows Says America Is “Not Going To Control” COVID-19 Pandemic

We all know that the Trump administration is doing nothing to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. But to hear them boldly admit to it, 9 days before the election, is still shocking. But White House chief of staff Mark Meadows did just that in an appearance on CNN’s State of the Union, where he told host Jake Tapper, “We are not going to control the pandemic. We are going to control the fact that we get vaccines, therapeutics and other mitigation areas,”.

This frank confession comes 8 months into the pandemic, when 8.6 million Americans have tested positive, and nearly 225,000 have died from COVID-19. This also comes as coronavirus cases are surging across the country, and five members of Vice President Mike Pence’s staff have tested positive. Pence and his team are, ironically, heading up the White House’s coronavirus task force.

But this second White House outbreak won’t deter Pence from the campaign trail. “I spoke to the vice president last night at midnight and I can tell you that what he is doing is wearing a mask, socially distancing and when he goes up to speak he will take the mask off and put it back on,” Meadows said. “He is wearing a mask as it relates to this particular thing because the doctors have advised him to do that.”

Pence’s chief of staff Marc Short, who works closely with Pence, was one of those who tested positive. And despite CDC recommendations that Pence quarantine for two weeks, the White House is labelling him as an “essential worker”, because campaigning is essential work now I guess.

Meadows claimed that the US wasn’t going to able to control the spread “Because it is a contagious virus just like the flu,” adding the Trump administration is “making efforts to contain it.” Meadows of course threw a 70-person indoor wedding for his daughter in May in Atlanta, GA, which doesn’t sound like much of a containment effort to me.

Many on social media took Meadows to task for the administration’s refusal to combat the virus:

Surrendering to coronavirus is a hell of a strategy for the Trump campaign. Let’s how this shakes out for them in November.

(via CNN, featured image: screencap/CNN)

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Chelsea Steiner

Chelsea was born and raised in New Orleans, which explains her affinity for cheesy grits and Britney Spears. An pop culture journalist since 2012, her work has appeared on Autostraddle, AfterEllen, and more. Her beats include queer popular culture, film, television, republican clownery, and the unwavering belief that 'The Long Kiss Goodnight' is the greatest movie ever made. She currently resides in sunny Los Angeles, with her husband, 2 sons, and one poorly behaved rescue dog. She is a former roller derby girl and a black belt in Judo, so she is not to be trifled with. She loves the word “Jewess” and wishes more people used it to describe her.

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