Rantz: Sen. Patty Murray condemned for ‘cheap’ shot against Trump over coronavirus

While most of the Washington delegation has forgone attacking the president in the last 48 hours, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) stood out for her “cheap” political shots. Now, she’s getting called out as both Republicans and Democrats hope to come together.

Vice President Mike Pence flew to Washington, health experts in tow, to meet with Washington political and health leaders on ways the federal government can work with the state to help mitigate the effects of the coronavirus.

Both Pence and Governor Jay Inslee stood side-by-side to commend one another over the coronavirus response. This, despite days earlier Inslee tweeting a cheap shot at the VP. Both handled the meeting with professionalism. The same can’t be said for Murray.

Patty Murray on the attack

On MSNBC, Murray was interviewed about the president’s response to the coronavirus which, so far, has been kept reasonably under control in the U.S. But Murray took the opportunity to attack.

You know, I just — that’s heartbreaking story. And I’m hearing so many people who are frustrated, angry. They don’t have good information. To hear the President say, ‘This is under control, go to work,’ and then they’re dealing with the reality on the ground, you just heard what’s happening at the Life Care Center. Think about all of the people now who are being told, ‘If you’re sick, stay home,’ who may not be able to afford to do that, they’re in hourly paychecks and they’re not getting a paycheck for two weeks. Think about all the parents and the students in those schools that are now being closed down that are trying to figure out how they’ll live their daily life. We know there are not enough tests, we are being told different things by different people. No one wants to be lied to or told what they hope. They want to know the truth. They want to know how to care for their families, protect them. Businesses want to know what decisions need to be made. Local officials need to know whether to cancel events or not. And now everyone is sort of taking this in their own hands and trying to make the best decisions they can. And we — this comes from the top of this administration that has not dealt with this correctly, accurately and in a timely information. (Emphasis mine)

While there’s a lot to unpack here, Murray is flat-out lying when she references Trump.

The context

It appears Murray is referencing a FOX News interview by Sean Hannity where the president correctly asserted the 3.4 mortality rate, cited by the World Health Organization, is incorrect. That rate is that high because we haven’t tested the tens of thousands of people who likely currently have coronavirus — or have already contracted it and gotten better.

But later in the interview, Trump said, ” So, if we have thousands or hundreds of thousands of people that get better just by, you know, sitting around and even going to work — some of them go to work, but they get better.”

Trump very clearly noted that people were going to work when they’re likely infected with the coronavirus, and they haven’t suffered any significant symptoms. This is very much in line with what health experts say about the virus. But it was just enough for bad faith ideologues to attack the president, hoping to hurt his re-election.

Matt Rogers is a progressive staffer for a state lawmaker in Virginia. He falsely claimed on Twitter that the president told “the country it’s okay to go to work with the coronavirus. I’m not kidding.” Matt Rogers is right to say he’s not kidding. He’s actually lying.

Matt is correct to say he's not kidding. He's flat out lying. Trump doesn't tell people it's okay to go to work with the coronavirus in this clip. But that won't stop media from reporting it — or @MurrayCampaign to regurgitate this on MSNBC. https://t.co/MjklGShjNj

— (((Jason Rantz))) on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) March 6, 2020

But it didn’t stop people from parroting this false claim. CBS News and MSNBC’s Chris Hayes picked it up as fact because they have a bias against the president. Indeed, CBS used openly partisan anti-Trump doctors to attack the president.

I NEVER said people that are feeling sick should go to work. This is just more Fake News and disinformation put out by the Democrats, in particular MSDNC. Comcast covers the CoronaVirus situation horribly, only looking to do harm to the incredible & successful effort being made!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 5, 2020

‘Cheap political points’

Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Spokane) has been hard at work fighting for local funding to tackle the coronavirus. It’s a bipartisan effort with her Republican and Democratic colleagues. I asked the congresswoman about Murray’s comments.

“This is not a time for scoring cheap political points,” McMorris Rodgers tells the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “This is a time for us to come together as a country, to focus on what we need to contain this coronavirus, to make sure that people are getting the care that they need and making sure that we are being smart and strategic.”

Social media

Congressman Rick Larsen (D-Everett) echoed the need to work together. Though I didn’t speak with Larsen specifically about the Murray comments, I did ask him about a recent false claim by Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) that Pence will “just pray” about the coronavirus.

“Hopefully viewers saw yesterday at the press conference, not only Vice President Pence and Governor Inslee standing together, but you saw nine members of the Washington delegation, Democrats and Republicans, standing together,” Larsen told the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH.

Unfortunately, some Democrats attacked Larsen for his bipartisanship.

“I’m already getting crap on social media from people saying, ‘How dare you stand near the vice president’ and I’m sure that my Republican colleagues are getting the same crap, ‘How can you stand with Governor Inslee?'” Larsen explained. “COVID-19 doesn’t have to declare a party preference for the presidential primary. COVID-19 doesn’t care what party you are and we shouldn’t care what party we are when we deal with these public health measures.”

Well said.

Listen to the Jason Rantz Show weekday afternoons from 3-6 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (or HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow @JasonRantz on Twitter.

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