Dem 47
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GOP 53
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COVID Is Back

Not so much the disease (which never went away) as the fights over how it was handled. One of the highest-profile public health officials during the pandemic, Dr. Amy Acton, is running for the Democratic nomination for governor of Ohio. She was director of the Ohio Department of Health in the early months of the pandemic and is almost as reviled on the right, in her state, as Dr. Anthony Fauci was nationally. She was responsible for many regulations intended to slow the spread of the virus, like masking requirements and prohibiting certain gatherings. This made her the enemy for many right-wing groups who believe that the pandemic was caused by God to punish America for allowing gay people to exist or something like that, and not by a communicable virus. The fact that Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) deferred to her on most health decisions made it even worse for her enemies. She had bamboozled a Republican governor, in addition to her other sins.

The pressure on Acton was immense. On March 12, 2020, she issued stay-at-home orders in an attempt to stop the pandemic in its tracks. The governor backed her up. She was on television and in the news constantly warning people that COVID was deadly and people needed to take some precautions to save lives. Many public health officials lauded her bravery and attempt to save lives. The New York Times called her "the leader we wish we all had." The Dr. Amy Acton Fan Club on Facebook quickly amassed 100,000 members. But she got enormous pushback from the right and death threats, some of which were openly antisemitic (Acton is Jewish). By June, the threats against her and her family had grown very intense. In addition, she was under great political pressure to allow people to attend the Ohio State Fair without masks, which she thought would be a superspreader event. She refused and resigned her position as health director, but remained as an adviser to the governor.

Her campaign is an attempt by both sides to relitigate COVID and all the restrictions. Was it worth it having to wear a mask in public so granny wouldn't die? Opinions are still very strong on that. Of course, we know a lot more about COVID now and what happened than she (or anyone) knew in the spring of 2020. Vivek Ramaswamy, the probable Republican nominee, will be the perfect foil for her, basically maintaining that medical science is bad and governments should not restrict anyone's freedom in any way. If millions of people have to die as a result, well, that's life (actually, it's death).

DeWine defended Acton during her entire tenure as health director. He hailed her as a "good, compassionate, and honorable person." This resulted in his being primaried when he ran for reelection, though he won the primary and general election. Even after her resignation, DeWine continued to laud her, saying "It's true not all heroes wear capes."

Now Acton is trying to parlay her fame into becoming governor of Ohio. If she gets the Democratic nomination, which is by no means certain, her likely opponent will be Vivek Ramaswamy, who is about as Trumpy as they come, which cuts both ways. Her entire campaign is about her time as health director and whether she saved thousands of Ohioans from death or whether she was some kind of dictator who ruled people's lives with an iron fist. It is also about whether the Middle Ages are alive and well in Ohio and whether science is a good idea or the spawn of the devil. (V)



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