Mark Meadows Stuns With Comments About Pandemic Response: ‘Just Giving Up’

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows set off a firestorm Sunday after telling Jake Tapper on CNN that “we are not going to control the pandemic.”

“Why aren’t we going to get control of the pandemic?” Tapper asked him.

“Because it is a contagious virus just like the flu,” Meadows responded.

“But why not make efforts to contain it?” Tapper followed up.

“We are making efforts to contain it,” Meadows said. “What we need to do is make sure that we have the proper mitigation factors.”

Meadows was immediately called out across social media for those blunt comments:

This statement from the White House chief of staff conflicts with many months of claims from the president that the pandemic is under control https://t.co/JUvdkTl8hp

— Philip Rucker (@PhilipRucker) October 25, 2020

The White House has obviously had trouble both dealing with Covid and messaging around it. And now they're closing the campaign by saying they're rounding the corner on a pandemic that they also simultaneously can't control.

— Sam Stein (@samstein) October 25, 2020

“We’re not going to control the virus.” ~Mark Meadows

By the end of this pandemic, it will be obvious to doctors, epidemiologists, and historians that Trump’s refusal to lead on the pandemic cost more American lives than Vietnam or World War I.

The recklessness continues. https://t.co/GYHb6YlSQC

— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) October 25, 2020

Death Cult ? https://t.co/7tUOZvefSo

— Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) October 25, 2020

The White House Chief of Staff just said “we’re not going to control the pandemic” right after the two largest daily case increases of the entire pandemic https://t.co/pZ8qw9mbLN

— Rep. Don Beyer (@RepDonBeyer) October 25, 2020

They can’t get control of the pandemic because they completely botched our response to it. They encouraged Trump’s followers to disregard the advice of public health officials. https://t.co/YeYfhhjc70

— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) October 25, 2020

https://t.co/Un9i8aUvZh pic.twitter.com/E3QTFoscng

— Tony Fratto (@TonyFratto) October 25, 2020

“We are not going to get control of the Pandemic”

Quite a statement from WH CoS Mark Meadows this morning, especially since it directly contradicts what the President and Vice President have said publicly for weeks, if not months.

— Scott Wapner (@ScottWapnerCNBC) October 25, 2020

The old strategy of trying to overwhelm your opponent’s advertising shop by giving them too much material a week before Election Day. https://t.co/yS5cvpDJ7S

— James Poniewozik (@poniewozik) October 25, 2020

That’s a hell of a closing message. https://t.co/ZF5w1tWvul

— Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) October 25, 2020

The White House unveils their closing argument regarding the worsening COVID-19 pandemic across the US. pic.twitter.com/f5uv2FG8yH

— Josh Jordan (@NumbersMuncher) October 25, 2020

Mark Meadows tells @jaketapper: “We are not going to get control of the pandemic.”
"We are winning the fight against the invisible enemy." — Vice President Mike Pence 6/16 who has five staffers who just tested positive.

— John Dickerson (@jdickerson) October 25, 2020

Meadows finally admitted what the rest of us always knew: Trump is incapable of leading an effort to contain the virus. He put all his hopes on miracle cures before the election that aren’t coming.

— Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) October 25, 2020

“We are not going to get control of the pandemic” is a difficult closing message with just over a week until Election Day https://t.co/OlmOCa9Rvc

— Jonathan Lemire (@JonLemire) October 25, 2020

Pretty striking to hear from the WH. https://t.co/bRMRB52Bui

— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) October 25, 2020

One thing the White House continues to overlook is that the outcome of contracting the virus isn’t binary (survival or death.)

People can survive COVID and have a myriad of long lasting health issues, some of which we won’t fully understand until years of research reveal them. https://t.co/EL05qfBVfB

— Charlie Gile (@CharlieGileNBC) October 25, 2020

We know that the simple act of wearing masks does in fact slow the spread of coronavirus and saves lives. And yet the White House keeps perpetuating this false choice between a total shutdown and uncontained spread. It’s dishonest.

— Rebecca Buck (@RebeccaBuck) October 25, 2020

Their actions have signaled this for months …but to hear it said out loud like this is stunning. https://t.co/mGtt8GD7xu

— Jackie Kucinich (@JFKucinich) October 25, 2020

Just a stunning statement. Not only because it’s 9 days out from an election, but because the White House Chief of Staff is saying outright the focus for them is mitigation, not containment of COVID. https://t.co/wjHHgvlJFp

— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) October 25, 2020

This is the official "It is what it is" policy. #CNNSOTU https://t.co/ChiYjSlmqf

— Amanda Carpenter (@amandacarpenter) October 25, 2020

They are allowing the virus to run wild. It's their policy. There is no vaccine. A mask mandate would save hundreds of thousands of lives.

This is tantamount to mass murder. https://t.co/tCAmsDx2C6

— Phil Plait (@BadAstronomer) October 25, 2020

Just giving up. https://t.co/1bnBNedz9K

— Eric Geller (@ericgeller) October 25, 2020

Winston Churchill: Never, never, never give up.
Trump Administration: We can’t control this virus. Maybe we can mitigate it. MAYBE. https://t.co/9r7kd1DQ98

— Rachel Vindman (@natsechobbyist) October 25, 2020