GOP voters call out President Donald Trump’s haphazard and widely criticized response to the coronavirus pandemic in a new ad released Friday by the anti-Trump conservative group Republicans for the Rule of Law.
“Even though I’ve been a Republican all my life, I can’t support Trump and his response to the coronavirus is exactly why,” five “real Republican voters” from Pennsylvania, Michigan and Arizona take turns saying in the 33-second clip.
“He told us this infection would just go away, even as it ripped across other countries,” the voters continue. “He’s been lying to us about available testing. He has squandered the one advantage that America had: time to prepare.”
“He says he puts America first, but it’s clear he only knows how to put Trump first,” they conclude. “This is a crisis, and we need real leadership. Donald Trump is incapable of it.”
Check out the clip here:
“When the government lies — especially when it lies about threats to the safety of the American people, especially in a time of crisis ― trust in government erodes,” conservative commentator Bill Kristol, the group’s director, said in a statement shared online.
“Why should citizens respect the government if the government doesn’t respect them?” he asked, noting how when Trump “lied about the coronavirus, about its seriousness, and about the government’s response to it, he damaged the very foundation of our government.”
“The coronavirus is a threat to our people. But the president’s mendacity is a threat to our Constitution,” he added.
The group said the ad will air during the commercial breaks on Fox News’ flagship morning show “Fox & Friends” in the D.C. area on Tuesday.
The pandemic has so far infected upward of 1 million people worldwide and killed more than 54,000. The U.S. has more confirmed cases (245,000+) than any other country, and some 6,000 people have died nationwide.
Last month, Republicans for the Rule of Law used this ad to scorn Trump’s false claim that he’d always taken the threat of the virus seriously:
- Stay up to date with our live blog as we cover the COVID-19 pandemic
- How long are asymptomatic carriers contagious?
- The coronavirus worker revolt is just beginning
- Heads up: Not all your tax deadlines have been postponed
- I just got out of a COVID-19 ICU. Here’s how I made it through.
- How to make a no-sew coronavirus face mask
- What to do if you live with someone with COVID-19
- There’s a simple game that can stop a tantrum cold
- The HuffPost guide to working from home
- What coronavirus questions are on your mind right now? We want to help you find answers.
- Everyone deserves accurate information about COVID-19. Support journalism – and keep it free for everyone – by becoming a HuffPost member today.