Jennifer Rubin Calls For Less Focus on Covid-19 Cases: ‘Not a Deadly or Even Severe Disease’ for Most

Kipp JonesDec 28th, 2021, 6:08 pm
 

Washington Post opinion writer Jennifer Rubin argued that Covid-19 is neither “deadly,” nor “severe” for most in a tweet that advocated against “agonizing” over cases as the Omicron variant spreads.

“As we recognize that covid-19 is not a deadly or even severe disease for the vast majority of responsible Americans, we can stop agonizing over ‘cases’ and focus on those who are hospitalized or at risk of dying,” Rubin tweeted on Tuesday.

With the tweet, Rubin shared a Tuesday article in which she argued that President Joe Biden is “learning not to fret over vaccine deniers.”

Rubin opined:

Omicron may be highly contagious, but the media’s obsession with case numbers is unwarranted. It is only the willfully defiant unvaccinated Americans who remain at risk. Frankly, there is not much anyone can do about them other than treat them when they wind up in emergency rooms.

The pivot from Rubin on Covid-19 cases was noted by reporters, pundits, cartoonists, and elected officials who came across it. Rubin months ago did tweet that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) was playing a losing game when he downplayed Covid-19 cases in his state.

Rubin’s sudden end-of-year change in perspective on case counts saw her come under fire from seemingly every direction.

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) succinctly responded, “Welcome to reality.”

Meanwhile, political and sports commentator Clay Travis said he saw in Rubin’s tweet a strategy to protect the Democratic Party from the political fallout of governing during an unprecedented nationwide spread in the months to come.

Others engaged in predictable partisan sniping, as Rubin’s tweet offered them the ammo to pounce on a prominent critic of Donald Trump.

The science can of course shift over the course of a two-year global pandemic. But the politics will never change.

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