In what appears to be a page taken out of POTUS’s last-ditch “re-elect me” playbook, MN GOP candidates are offering a “contract with Minnesota”, I guess, to get this economy a-rollin’ again in the midst of dark weeks ahead in this pandemic, which is officially widespread.
“We trust the people of Minnesota to keep safe and keep others safe,” said Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, R-East Gull Lake, arguing that health and safety protocols such as limiting restaurant seating and wearing masks should be voluntary, not state-mandated. He also called for cutting other government regulations and returning more students to in-school education.
The Minnesota Republicans’ vow to loosen state COVID-19 restrictions came on the same day that President Donald Trump sharply criticized Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, referring to him as a “disaster” in a call with campaign staff and reporters. “People are tired of COVID,” the president said. “People are tired of hearing Fauci and all these idiots.”
At recent rallies in Iowa and Wisconsin, Trump also has told crowds that states need to reopen and get kids back in school.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases have surged in the Midwest, sweeping rural communities that previously had not seen high infection rates. The Dakotas, which Minnesota Republicans have praised for their light-handed approach to the pandemic, have the highest case rates in the nation.
