When Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott lifted his state’s mask mandate, President Joe Biden vilified the decision as “Neanderthal thinking.”
“The last thing — the last thing we need is Neanderthal thinking,” said the “science” president who also signed an executive order on his first day in office mandating opportunities for male participation in female sports.
California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, now facing a recall effort provoked primarily by his aggressive pursuit of strict lockdowns, echoed the president’s sentiment.
Absolutely reckless. https://t.co/3O5GsbSLpM
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) March 2, 2021
“We’re never going to subscribe to the point of view of some of the other states,” Newsom said the day Abbott lifted statewide restrictions mandating masks and social distancing. “There was one large state today that said, ‘No masks, everything goes back to normal’ in the midst of pandemic.”
The elite rhetoric fueled doomsday concerns, or in some cases, a suspicious hope for a deadly failure to justify continued lockdowns. The concept of personal responsibility disappeared entirely from lawmakers’ considerations, as government mandates became the only viable option. Based on liberal reactions on Twitter, those unfamiliar the Texas order might have thought Abbott banned face masks altogether.
Former Texas Democratic Congressman Beto O’Rourke railed the repeal as a “death warrant for Texans.”
“Abbott is killing the people of Texas,” O’Rourke wrote.
A death warrant for Texans.
Add them to the 44,000+ killed as he failed to confront the pandemic & botched the vaccine rollout.
And those who froze to death because he cares more about energy companies’ profits than keeping Texans alive.
Abbott is killing the people of Texas. https://t.co/2idUcqSjJT
— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) March 2, 2021
Three weeks later, COVID cases in Texas remain lower than they were.
Abbott’s order to lift restrictions went into effect on March 10, a day when Texas saw 5,350 new cases and a seven-day average of 4,909. On March 29, more than 25 percent decline in new cases from the day Abbott’s order became effective. The state reported 4,007 new cases Monday, with a seven-day average of 4,088.
Texas deaths have seen an even sharper decline as vaccines protect the most vulnerable populations.
On March 10, 202 Texas died from the novel Wuhan coronavirus. The state’s seven-day death average stood at 190. On Monday, 44 deaths were reported, a more than 78 percent decline, and the state’s seven-day death average stands at 99.
In Mississippi, whose Republican governor lifted restrictions around the same time with orders going into effect on March 3, cases and deaths have seen an even sharper decline. The state saw 380 new cases reported on March 3 with a seven-day average of 541, and 19 deaths. On Monday, only 29 new cases were reported, a 92 percent decline, with a seven-day average of 252 and still declining. Zero deaths were reported.
At this point, the hysteria from lockdown liberals has shown to be nothing more than Neanderthal thinking.
