Right-wing commentator Ben Shapiro was happy to concede Wednesday that the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic is a serious problem, but he expressed disbelief that politicians would bring up the fact that the virus has revealed other problems Americans face.
On Wednesday’s episode of “The Ben Shapiro Show,” Shapiro took to criticizing Democratic figures who have discussed the coronavirus outbreak in the context of other political issues that also affect people on a mass scale. First up was former President Barack Obama, who in a tweet Tuesday compared the hardships caused by leaders who “denied warnings of a pandemic” to those we will face if leaders deny climate science.
We've seen all too terribly the consequences of those who denied warnings of a pandemic. We can't afford any more consequences of climate denial. All of us, especially young people, have to demand better of our government at every level and vote this fall. https://t.co/K8Ucu7iVDK
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) March 31, 2020
Shapiro mocked Obama’s message, doing an impression of the former president and challenging global warming to “come on” and kill the coronavirus. (It is currently unclear whether the coronavirus will wane in warmer weather.)
“We’re in the middle of a global pandemic. You think that the global warming talk is really going to be like the thing that we’re all worried about super a lot right now? By the way, come on global warming! I’m rooting for global warming right about now to kill off this virus. Like, I’m willing to take the hit 100 years from now if a little bit more global warming in like the next five minutes. That’d be fantastic,” Shapiro said. “But when President Obama is out there playing this game—question—is that useful? Is that super useful?”
Shapiro also criticized former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro, who appeared on MSNBC and said that the coronavirus has revealed “just how close so many million American families are to poverty” and “the long-term problem that we have when it comes to housing affordability.” Shapiro, again, was aghast.
So many Americans are one financial setback away from poverty or housing insecurity.
We need immediate federal action to keep people in their homes. pic.twitter.com/wy0tULV4Tp
— Julián Castro (@JulianCastro) April 1, 2020
“Seriously? That’s where you’re going with all this is affordable housing? We’re trying to fight a global pandemic right now. You might want to put your Marxist backburner ideas on backburner,” Shapiro said. “Come on. Come on. Your side projects don’t matter. By the way, neither does President Trump’s $2 trillion call for infrastructure spending. Sorry, we’re too busy destroying the entire future of the American federal budget, or we’re going to do that over here, so if you want to add like another few trillion dollars on top of that to fill potholes, I’m going to go 'no' on that.”
