AP Reports on Politicians Neglecting COVID Guidelines, Conveniently Leaves Out Their Party
When is a politician’s party not important? When he’s breaking the rules and he’s a Democrat, evidently.
On Monday, The Associated Press ran a story about politicians breaking their own COVID-19 lockdown rules or suggestions. Under the headline “‘Do as I say’: Anger as some politicians ignore virus rules,” the article explored voters’ unhappiness with politicians flouting their rhetoric when it comes to containing the novel coronavirus when it means having a good time themselves.
I have to admit, writer Juliet Williams manages an impressive opening — the kind of punchy lede a good straight news story should have, all without excessive editorializing:
“Denver’s mayor flies to Mississippi to spend Thanksgiving with his family — after urging others to stay home. He later says he was thinking with ‘my heart and not my head.’ A Pennsylvania mayor bans indoor dining, then eats at a restaurant in Maryland. The governor of Rhode Island is photographed at an indoor wine event as her state faces the nation’s second-highest virus rate,” Williams wrote.
“While people weigh whether it’s safe to go to work or the grocery store, the mayor of Austin, Texas, heads to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, on a private jet after hosting a wedding for 20. California’s governor dines at a swanky French restaurant with lobbyists, none wearing masks, a day after San Francisco’s mayor was there for a birthday party. Both had recently imposed tough rules on restaurants, shops and activities to slow the spread of the virus.”
Williams goes on to point out, not wrongly, that this kind of let-them-eat-DoorDash attitude can give voters the impression these politicians aren’t just above the law but are part of a new COVID aristocracy, one that gets to enjoy life as if things were status quo ante while the rest of us hunker down with our Netflix, our pets and our social isolation.
“In a monarchy, a king or queen is special, born to the role, cast as above the rest. In a dictatorship, the ruler often takes more spoils than the ruled,” she wrote.
“But in a democratic society, where leaders are drawn from among the very people who must abide by their decisions, what happens when those in charge act in ways that suggest they’re above those who are not?”
That sentence is interesting in two ways, however. Yes, it raises serious questions about what our politicians believe they’re entitled to. Is there any particular word that sticks out to you there?
I’m thinking, specifically, of “democratic.” It’s one of two times a word with the root “democrat” is used in the story.
Only once is it used as a proper noun — as in, a member of the Democratic Party. This is interesting, because every single example Williams used in her lede involves a member of the Democratic Party.
Let’s go through the individuals mentioned in Williams’ lede seriatim. On Nov. 25, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock, a Democrat, tweeted this:
Pass the potatoes, not COVID.
?️Stay home as much as you can, especially if you’re sick.
?Host virtual gatherings instead of in-person dinners.
❌Avoid travel, if you can.
?Order your holiday meal from a local eatery.
?Shop online with a small business for #BlackFriday. pic.twitter.com/acQpWs2Ism— Michael B. Hancock ? (@MayorHancock) November 25, 2020
A half-hour after he told residents to “Avoid travel, if you can,” Hancock boarded a flight for a very voluntary trip to spend Thanksgiving in Mississippi.
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, a Democrat, banned indoor dining in his city over the summer. In late August, he was spotted dining in neighboring Maryland, and not al fresco:
“I felt the risk was low because the county I visited has had fewer than 800 COVID-19 cases, compared to over 33,000 cases in Philadelphia,” Kenney said in a tweet. “Regardless, I understand the frustration.”
Restaurant owners are among the hardest hit by the pandemic. I’m sorry if my decision hurt those who’ve worked to keep their businesses going under difficult circumstances. Looking forward to reopening indoor dining soon and visiting my favorite spots. https://t.co/Ki3lIZV8i4
— Jim #MaskUpPHL Kenney (@PhillyMayor) August 31, 2020
And if you can, get down to Maryland. I hear they have great seafood. If you have a motorcade to take you, I highly recommend it.
On Dec. 7, Rhode Island Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo tweeted this:
It’s week two of our pause. I know it’s been hard, but I want to thank every Rhode Islander who’s following our guidance. Please, stay home except for essential activities & wear a mask anytime you’re with people you don’t live with. Together, we can turn our case numbers around.
— Gina Raimondo (@GovRaimondo) December 7, 2020
On Dec. 17, someone else tweeted this:
Meet Rhode Island’s Gov Gina Raimondo – she told her citizens to stay home – she said they couldn’t even go to a friends house for a visit.
And this is Gina all gussied up at a wine bar, mask-free for a xmas wine/art event.
Why are you still listening to these people? pic.twitter.com/I9GsGIXfeO
— Amy (@RestingTwitFace) December 17, 2020
According to WLNE-TV, Raimondo defended herself by saying she was only without a mask when she was eating or drinking — and she had a glass of wine in her hand at the time. This was a wine bar, after all.
“My rules as I have said are stay with your household, that’s what we were doing, wear your mask, that’s what we did,” she said. “I’ve also been asking Rhode Islanders to shop local, which is what we were doing.”
A representative of the Rhode Island Department of Commerce told the outlet the rules are “in reference to places like arcades or entertainment venues that also have venues in them. An activity like the painting night would be allowed as long as there are protocols in place to prevent sharing of tools between households.”
You figure that one out yourself.
Meanwhile, Democrat Steve Adler, mayor of Austin, Texas, filmed himself telling people to stay home … while in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
EXCLUSIVE: Austin Mayor Steve Adler told the public to “stay home if you can…this is not the time to relax” in a Nov. 9 Facebook video. He did not disclose that he was at a timeshare in Cabo San Lucas after flying on a private jet with eight family members and guests. pic.twitter.com/w1uZahGfpM
— Tony Plohetski (@tplohetski) December 2, 2020
And as for Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and San Francisco Mayor London Breed’s attending poorly distanced events at a swanky Napa Valley restaurant called the French Laundry within a day of one another, well, you probably remember those.
EXCLUSIVE: Full story re: photos of Gavin Newsom at Napa dinner party we obtained. Responses from Newsom’s team as well as Jason Kinney’s team included. His team also referred us to a Town & Country magazine photo describing the seating as outdoors. https://t.co/LmQ2yIggGf @FOXLA
— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) November 18, 2020
In her article, Williams was able to capture the frustration people felt at the Marie Antoinette-style COVID-regulation flouting.
“To Erica Bohn, 49, who hasn’t hugged her adult children since March, it feels like a slap in the face,” Williams wrote.
“’The disconnect is really confusing to me. These are intelligent, well-educated, well-informed people that should know better,’ said Bohn, a financial consultant from Champaign, Illinois. ‘It’s no wonder people are confused or don’t believe what politicians say.’”
As for capturing what party these politicians belonged to? Only one — Newsom — had his party identification mentioned, and he’s well-known enough that it’s the one case where mentioning his affiliation seemed superfluous.
“California Gov. Gavin Newsom has fielded weeks of questions about whether he’s a credible coronavirus messenger after dining out with a group,” Williams wrote. “The Democrat has called it a lapse in judgment but has ignored questions about whether Californians can still trust him. A growing effort to gather enough signatures for a recall vote shows that many have had enough.”
That’s it.
Williams found a sample size of six major political hypocrites whose decision to break their own rules made headlines. All six were from the same party. They’re also from the party that tends to advocate stricter lockdown measures. Even without that fact, that correlation wasn’t worth mentioning?
Do you think we’d be left wondering if they were Republicans?
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