Although there have been no new Ebola diagnosis in the United States in the past 5 days, Republicans have been on the rampage, ginning up fear and hysteria over the disease and claiming that Democrats are the ones causing the apparent “outbreak.”
It should be noted that so far, a grand total of two infections were contracted here in the United States. But that fact hasn’t stopped Republicans from calling for travel bands from South African countries and claiming that ebola victims are pouring through the southern borders and it is clearly Obama’s fault.
Then there was a total disbelief in how the CDC was handling the “outbreak” as Republicans, led by John McCain, suggested that the only way to stop the massive ebola infections would be for the president to immediately appoint an ‘Ebola Czar,’ and any failure to do so would lead to the ultimate destruction of these United States.
Yes, the fear machine was in full throttle.
But what about a Surgeon General? Wouldn’t such a person be the ideal to provide information and deal with Ebola? Where is the Surgeon General and why have we heard absolutely nothing from him?
Because Republicans have blocked his confirmation and they are blaming the president for that too.
Over a year ago, the president tapped Dr. Vivek Murthy to be the new Surgeon General. His confirmation has been blocked by Republicans and to believe Ted Cruz on CNN, Murthy should not even be considered for the job because he’s not qualified. But of course that too is a lie.
This is how the conversation went down on CNN’s State of the Union with Candy Crowley;
CROWLEY: Do you think it would have helped … had there been a surgeon general in place to kind of calm what has become the fear of Ebola?
CRUZ: Look – look, of course we should have a surgeon general in place. And we don’t have one because President Obama, instead of nominating a health professional, he nominated someone who is an anti- gun activist.
To hear the Texas Republican tell it, Dr. Vivek Murthy isn’t even a “health professional,” which is the exact opposite of reality.
Outside of far-right politics, the facts are not in dispute.
Murthy is an attending physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and an instructor at Harvard Medical School. He’s also the founder of TrialNetworks, an Internet portal for clinical-trial operations that counts Merck and Biogen Idec as customers. Earlier, he helped start a rural community health program in Sringeri, India, and an HIV/AIDS youth education program in India and the United States. He went to Harvard for his undergraduate degree and Yale for medical and business degrees.
None other than George W. Bush’s former Surgeon General described Murthy as “superbly” qualified for the post, pointing to his “impressive track record of accomplishments.” The executive director of the American Public Health Association argued that Murthy is “clearly qualified to succeed” in all of the major roles of the Surgeon General.
When Cruz suggests Obama failed to nominate “a health professional,” the senator has absolutely no idea what he’s talking about.
As for the Republican argument that Murthy is “an anti- gun activist,” again, reality proves otherwise. Murthy believes gun violence is a public-health issue – as do most medical professionals, including Ronald Reagan’s Surgeon General – but it’s never been the principal focus of his work in medicine.
The nation has been without a Surgeon General for over a year, and it seems increasingly obvious that the vacancy is having a detrimental effect. No fair-minded observer could possibly question Murthy’s background or qualifications – his confirmation hearings were a breeze – but literally every Republican in the Senate refuses to even consider the doctor because the NRA told them not to.
Republicans own this. Blaming the president for their ridiculous antics might make the right feel better, but it’s nevertheless absurd.
