Vice President Mike Pence made the White House's position on school reopening clear: They want to go forward regardless of what anyone says, even the CDC. Not only that, the CDC guidelines and their advice are not wanted.
Trump made that position clear earlier in the day:
I disagree with @CDCgov on their very tough & expensive guidelines for opening schools. While they want them open, they are asking schools to do very impractical things. I will be meeting with them!!!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 8, 2020
Trump thinks our children's safety is too "expensive" and "very impractical" and he plans to have a talk with them. Like a boss or something.
Pence echoed those sentiments during a press conference on Wednesday: “We don’t want the guidance from the CDC to be the reason schools don’t open up.”
How do you feel about your children? Are you willing to sacrifice them so malls can reopen and the stock market can rebound and Trump can win reelection? Or would you prefer your children to stay healthy and alive?
Twitter had thoughts:
The President thinks what the @CDCgov is asking schools to do is “impractical.” I think it’s incomprehensible in the midst of a soaring #covid pandemic to send students & staff back to school with no guidance, no safety guardrails & no funding. https://t.co/xiMjk0tWsH
— Randi Weingarten (@rweingarten) July 8, 2020
Can someone please tell Mike Pence that CDC stands for Christian Dads Club so he’ll listen to their advice
— Jason O. Gilbert (@gilbertjasono) July 8, 2020
Yall
I'm so fucking angry
Pence actually said “We don’t want the guidance from the CDC to be the reason schools don’t open up.”
This is INSANE..we are in the middle of a pandemic and the CDC is supposed to be the experts and we are being told to ignore them by a religious cult— ABlackWomanWhoDontGiveAF*ck (@battletested5) July 8, 2020
Pence says the CDC guidelines are just there to present "a range of options" and Trump says he will cut funding to schools that don't do what he wants them to do.
This is why we are having the worst pandemic response on the planet.— digby (@digby56) July 8, 2020
Good news guys, Mike Pence is overruling those amateurs over at the CDC which stand for "Centers for Disease Control" in case you were wondering. https://t.co/spaRRO9YVI
— Apparent Steve (@Steverocks35) July 8, 2020
This tweet from an ACTUAL MEDICAL DOCTOR sums it up:
Really?@VP Pence: “We don’t want the guidance from the @CDCgov to be the reason schools don’t open up.”
The CDC's job is to help schools reopen safely. If schools can't follow these guidelines, they aren't able to protect students & teachers and SHOULDN'T reopen. #covid19— Leana Wen, M.D. (@DrLeanaWen) July 8, 2020
As always, the White House makes the absolute worst decision ever when faced with something that could save lives.
Here is a twitter thread listing the educators and support staff who have died of this virus. Worth saying all their names.
Teachers, administrators, and support staff who died this spring from COVID-19.
They didn't decide to work in education to become rich. They chose to follow their hearts and hoped to make a difference in a child's life.
Thread. pic.twitter.com/CxuyPi2l4N— Janine Kube (@KubeJ9) July 8, 2020
