U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams is facing pressure from both Democrats and Republicans to condemn the other side for attending in-person gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I’ve got Democrats who want me to condemn people who are out at the presidential rallies, I’ve got Republicans who want me to condemn people who are going to vigils,” Adams said during his appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
He added, “At the end of the day, the virus doesn’t care about your politics. It doesn’t care what you’re going out for. It only cares whether or not you’re following public health measures.”
Adams urged Americans, regardless of their politics, to wear a mask, practice social distancing, and wash their hands as often as possible.
Watch his comments below:
U.S. Surgeon General on Pres. Trump’s packed campaign rallies as the coronavirus crisis as the death toll tops 200,000: “The virus doesn’t care about your politics.”
— Good Morning America (@GMA) September 23, 2020
@Surgeon_General@GStephanopouloshttps://t.co/3DjPiVb0zF pic.twitter.com/FkNCWFbU0D
He encouraged Americans to get their flu vaccine to decrease their risk of hospitalizations and take the stress off of health care workers already trying to combat the coronavirus.
Assistant Secretary for Health Adm. Brett Giroir was pressed recently on why Trump continues to hold rallies as the death toll continues to rise, as IJR previously reported.
“Biology is independent of politics. The virus will do what the virus wants to do,” Giroir said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
Ahead of Trump’s campaign rally in Nevada on Sept. 13, Dr. Jonathan Reiner, CNN medical analyst and professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University, criticized the president for putting his supporters in danger, as IJR previously reported.
Reiner called Trump’s decision to hold the campaign indoors “negligent homicide.”
Prior to taking the stage at his rally, Trump revealed in an interview with the “Las Vegas: Review Journal” why he is not concerned about the coronavirus at his events.
Trump explained he is not concerned about catching the coronavirus at his rallies because he is “on a stage, and it’s very far away.”
