Americans are coming together and making great sacrifices to combat the Chinese coronavirus pandemic, yet in Washington, Nancy Pelosi and Democrats are holding the coronavirus relief hostage for their own partisan gain. Plainly stated, the Democrats’ behavior is despicable and it is well past time for their petty partisanship to stop.
We went into this past weekend expecting the U.S. Senate to pass legislation to help combat the virus and stimulate the economy. Instead, we are witnessing Nancy Pelosi and her Democrat allies block votes and shove billions in pork spending into the bill that had been negotiated in bipartisan good faith over three days.
None of this helps solve the problem. Americans are making great sacrifices to flatten the curve on the spread of the virus. This is to help us buy the necessary time for our private sector, working together with public officials, to build up the medical system infrastructure to avoid overwhelming our healthcare system.
Thanks to President Trump, Arizona and many states around the nation are now able to secure the critically needed Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), such as N95 masks, face shields, surgical gowns, coveralls, gloves and more.
As a physician, I know firsthand how critical these medical supplies are to our healthcare workers. Our doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, and other medical personnel are our frontline soldiers in the war against this virus. We would never dream of sending our military troops into battle without helmets, guns, ammo, or any of the other essential gear. In the same way, we need to make sure our healthcare professionals have the essential gear that they need.
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3M the primary manufacturer of N95 masks has already sent more than a half-million protective masks to New York and Seattle. President Trump’s deregulation last week made that delivery, and the rapid timeline for which it happened, possible by getting government out of the private sector’s way and letting them focus on simply solving the problem. Incredibly, now that government has gotten out of the way, 3M is reporting that they will be able to send 90 percent of their new supply to hospitals and medical offices, while simultaneously doubling their usual annual production.
While these actions have been a godsend for the healthcare workers across the country, we need to continue to do more; which is why every single hardworking American should find the Democrats’ selfish, partisan exploitation of this crisis utterly disgusting.
This is personal for me. Not only are many colleagues and friends going into harm’s way, my husband Mike is an emergency room physician. The fact that partisan gamesmanship has delayed releasing funds to hospitals should be unacceptable to all Americans regardless of political persuasion. How can we expect the frontline of our healthcare system to do their jobs while the politicians responsible for ensuring they have adequate funding and supplies bicker like juveniles?
Democrats’ attempts to exploit the Coronavirus to achieve their wish list of progressive-socialist policy are putting America’s healthcare workers, small businesses, and middle class in grave danger. It’s time for them to stop playing games and do the work that the American people elected them to do.
Dr. Kelli Ward is a family physician, two-term Arizona state senator and the chairwomen of the Republican Party or Arizona. On Twitter: @KelliWardAZ
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