Dr. Anthony Fauci went on ABC’s “This Week” Sunday morning and talked about the significant dangers posed by the Omicron virus found already in South Africa, Belgium, and Hong Kong, and already seen in people without direct travel to South Africa (indicating circulation in the community). We have seen this movie before and it’s a scary one.

Dr. Anthony Fauci says it's “really too early to say” whether Americans can expect new lockdowns or mandates to combat omicron variant.

“We just really need to, as I've said so often, prepare for the worst." https://t.co/E0fMRghHKQ pic.twitter.com/T3uk9MKsC1

— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) November 28, 2021

The very fact that the word “lockdown” even came up, given all our vaccines, is telling, with respect to the danger this variant may pose (there are so many unknowns that one cannot take any of this as inevitable except for the fact that the “danger” that it could be extremely serious is real).

Just imagine the type of anarchy we might face if Omicron proves to be exceedingly dangerous. Unless the virus is 20% lethal or something so terrifying that people would hide on their own, it is almost impossible to imagine a scenario where MAGAs would follow a Biden shutdown order, even if – as but an example – there is a 5% mortality rate to Omicron, a significant leap.  The MAGAs are already preparing their denial, their readiness to ignore the science and disbelieve the president.

Ronny Jackson, a man who is a physician and (this is breathtaking) was once considered qualified to be the president’s personal doctor, is already downplaying the possible severity, but more dangerously, he is already politicizing any action that President Biden might be forced to take:

Here comes the MEV – the Midterm Election Variant! They NEED a reason to push unsolicited nationwide mail-in ballots. Democrats will do anything to CHEAT during an election – but we're not going to let them!

— Ronny Jackson (@RonnyJacksonTX) November 27, 2021

See? We could face a scenario where the South African government, or perhaps the European Union, faces tremendous danger and take drastic steps ahead of anything we might do. And still, the MAGAs will say that the Democrats are focusing on the variant as a means to “cheat” in elections. “Cheat,” of course, means allowing everyone to vote by mail, thus ensuring greater participation and – as always, when more people vote, more Democrats win.

We face stunningly dangerous unknown questions. For all we know, Europe could shut itself down. But the fact that people like Ronny Jackson say it’s nothing more than a means to “cheat” is a big red flag that our democracy is even more fragile than it was a month ago.

****

[email protected] and on Substack: Much Ado About Everything

The opinions expressed by contributors and/or content partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of LeftScoop.news. Contact us for guidelines on submitting your own commentary.