Donald Trump Jr.'s Tweets About New York's Vaccine Mandates Are Raising Eyebrows
After months of seeing the number of new COVID-19 cases moving down and then leveling off, New York City is starting to see an uptick once again. It might not look like much, but the 14-day change shows a staggering 158% increase in the number of cases (via The New York Times). With health experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci warning that the unvaccinated are "propagating" this latest outbreak (via CBS), some local governments are now trying to take pre-emptive steps to make sure the situation does not worse.
New York, which saw COVID-19 cripple the city during the early days of the pandemic last year, became the first U.S. city to require persons working in — or patronizing — restaurants, gyms, and theaters to be vaccinated at least once (via The New York Times). The mandate, similar to those imposed in France and Italy, will begin August 16.
The new edict has its critics and opponents, notably Donald Trump Jr. who went on social media to register his disapproval. He first tweeted, "Democrats and the media want a two-tiered society where millions of law-abiding Americans are segregated and discriminated against. This is what actual fascism looks like!!!" He later wrote: "Bill "Papers Please" de Blasio is Pro-Segregation and wants to unilaterally discriminate against millions of law abiding New Yorkers. No wonder why so many of us are moving to the free state of Florida!!!"
Donald Trump Jr's tweets are expected to resonate with anti-vaxxers
Twitter stood ready to take Don Jr. to task for his comment. "What you meant to say is: Vaccines and masks are a good thing. It is not politics. Please get vaccinated and wear a mask to protect the immunocompromised, etc. Thank you ... signed America," one Twitter user wrote.
Another pointed out that "Florida has been experiencing, BY FAR, the most COVID outbreaks and deaths amongst all states — more than Texas, California, and New York combined. So, yes, let's all go down to catch and spread some COVID! Great idea, Jr."
The state of Florida is not in the dark about its own coronavirus stats. Tampa Bay's Fox News affiliate reported that there were nearly 51,000 new COVID-19 cases between July 31 and August 2, and Florida TV station WLRN says the state now has the highest number of inpatient hospitalizations in the country.
But Don Jr.'s rhetoric is expected to resonate with anti-vaxxers. "I just don't understand why the vaccinated are so afraid of the unvaccinated? Maybe they know it isn't as effective as they say?" one tweeted.