Tucker Carlson says coronavirus 'will get worse' while Trish Regan claims it's an impeachment scam
On Monday night, Tucker Carlson split from his colleagues on Fox News and condemned politicians downplaying the seriousness of the coronavirus. President Donald Trump has repeatedly contradicted experts when it comes to the virus, and lawmakers have openly mocked peoples’ reaction to it. Ironically, some who joined in, like Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, who wore a gas mask on the House floor, are now in self-quarantine after coming in contact with a person who has the disease at CPAC. And Carlson, who has made outrageous claims about the virus in the past and continues to refer to it as “Chinese coronavirus,” now says those continuing to minimize it are wrong to do so.
“People you trust, people you probably voted for, have spent weeks minimizing what is clearly a very serious problem,” Carlson said, later adding, “They’re wrong. The Chinese coronavirus is a major event. It will affect your life, and by the way, it’s definitely not just the flu. In a typical year, the flu in this country has a mortality rate of about 1 in 1000. The overall death rate for this virus, by contrast, is as high as 3.4 percent.”
Carlson also pushed back on the notion that it’s only a matter of time before the coronavirus is a thing of the past. Early on in the outbreak, Trump said the virus would go away in April when the weather gets warmer.
“The Chinese coronavirus will get worse,” Carlson said. “Its effects will be far more disruptive than they are right now. That is not a guess, it is inevitable no matter what they’re telling you. Let’s hope everyone stops lying about that and soon.”
Meanwhile, at the exact same time over on Fox Business, Trish Regan not only made the comparison to the flu that Carlson warned against, she told her audience that this is all just a conspiracy to take down Trump.
“This is yet another attempt to impeach the president,” Regan said, adding, “Many in the liberal media using, and I mean using, coronavirus in an attempt to demonize and destroy the president.”
Tucker Carlson Tonight airs weeknights at 8 p.m. on Fox News Channel.
Watch John Oliver say Trump is showing ‘a callous indifference to human life’ in handling the coronavirus:
Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:
Hillary Clinton recalls White House policy that got her ‘into a lot of trouble’
Elizabeth Warren admits she intended to tank Bloomberg’s candidacy at debate
Trump has a ‘hunch’ WHO report of 3.4% coronavirus death rate is false
Tell us what you think! Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, or leave your comments below. And check out our host, Kylie Mar, on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.
Want daily pop culture news delivered to your inbox? Sign up here for Yahoo Entertainment & Lifestyle's newsletter.