In a segment with CNN’s Brooke Baldwin on Thursday, political pundit Gloria Borger introduced the possibility that scientists are being silenced when it comes to coronavirus, calling it a public health threat. Baldwin responded by labeling the potential muzzling “an incredibly frightening note.”
Baldwin took aim at Vice President Mike Pence, who Donald Trump designated to lead the coronavirus response, calling into question his controversial 2015 response to an HIV outbreak in rural Indiana, and his 2000 op-ed that claimed smoking doesn’t kill.
In discussion with Borger and Laura Unger, who covered Pence’s response to the HIV outbreak, Baldwin asked, “Do you think this country is confident in how this administration could handle an outbreak like this?”
Borger responded by noting that the president “starts with very little credibility,” adding, “the question is whether you can get the truth more from the scientists or whether you believe the politicians are the right people to get the truth, or whether they can actually work together to get on the same page.”
The New York Times reported Thursday that the White House directed all government health officials and scientists to coordinate their public statements with Pence in an effort to tighten messaging.
Borger sparked concern from when she discussed the coronavirus outbreak, noting, “When scientists use the word pandemic, they don’t take that lightly, and they say that it is a possibility, and if
“We’ll end on an incredibly frightening note,” Baldwin said.
Watch above, via CNN.