The denial of reality was in full swing, mid-show on today's Meet the Press. Joe Scarborough doesn't trust this administration, while Andrea Mitchell was irate that the CDC and the NIH promised us there'd be no Ebola cases in the U.S., and what happens? Ebola walks right into a Dallas hospital! Mitchell and Morning Joe were the alarmists while David Axelrod and Gwen Ifill were there to add some sanity to this discussion.
This poor Ebola patient in Dallas might not have been sent home, after telling the nurse he just came from Liberia, if things in Texas were different. Mitchell conveniently left out the crises happening in every red state whose Republican governors have rejected the Medicaid expansion. Far more people die from lack of healthcare than will die in this country from the Ebola Virus.
The patient makes national news, and his mere existence has frightened Joe Scarborough to no end. Why? Because, GOP talking points. He says,
"look at the laundry list, look what happened with the VA, look what happened with the Secret Service, look what happened with the IRS, look what happened with ISIS being a JV team, Americans don't believe the government...This IS A CRISIS... the W.H.O. has been dismal, they've ignored all the warning signs."
Thankfully Gwen Ifill interjected and reminded everyone that there's been ONE case of Ebola. She asked, "One case is a tipping point?"
Scarborough knows better, because he's heard from Dr. Ken Brantley, who had the disease. Brantley thanked Jesus above all for saving his life from Ebola, and he is the ideal person to proclaim an emergency. Joe quotes Brantley, "This is a fire from hell and if you think the Atlantic Ocean will stop it from coming over here, you've got another thing coming."
Axelrod, with the zinger of the segment says, "I don't want to disagree with Doctor Scarborough, but (followed by inaudible words)..." which created a flurry of controversy amongst the panel. President Obama's former top advisor tried to silence the hysteria by listing all the top medical doctors who have no political stake in telling people that we have this under control if we weren't able to contain Ebola.
Scarborough couldn't contain his outrage and looked very uncomfortable. Chuck tried to get things under control, but could hardly overcome the strong will of both Axelrod and Scarborough. Joe pleaded,
This is a serious issue, I'm quoting people who have had Ebola (1 person). We have to ask tough questions,"
no matter how baseless and ridiculous they are. We have to spread misinformation, it's the Republican way. If I had to declare a winner, it would be Axelrod, hands down.
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