CONCORD, N.H. – With Vice President Mike Pence arriving in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Democrats took the opportunity to slam Pence and other Republicans on their handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley said he did not expect Pence to give any remorse during his visit for the 200,000 people who have died from COVID-19 nationally or the thousands in New Hampshire who have been economically impacted, stating that Pence and Trump lied about the pandemic and failed to react to the pandemic properly.
“The people of New Hampshire will not be taken for fools,” said Buckley. “It’s clear (Trump and Pence) knew how bad this would be and didn’t take the necessary steps to contain the damage.”
Congressman Chris Pappas (D-NH) added his hope that all Americans can begin to regularly wear masks, stating that doing so could save 75,000 more lives.
“Reaching this milestone of 200,000 Americans lost, It didn’t have to be this way,” said Pappas. “When you look at every other country in the world, we make up the largest share of the world’s deaths and we have to continue to do as much as we can from here on out.”
Pappas also expressed frustration that the U.S. Senate has not taken up action on the HEROES Act and stated that he was willing to compromise with Republicans regarding future COVID-19 relief, but would not budge on additional unemployment benefits for those who have lost their jobs due to the pandemic, support for schools and support for municipalities.
Dr. Jay Buckey, a former Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, former astronaut and current doctor of hyperbaric medicine for Dartmouth-Hitchcock, criticized the Trump administration for their response to the pandemic, likening it to someone leaving their best players on the bench during the Super Bowl and then wondering why they lost the game.
Buckey said it has been mere luck that no positive cases have been reported from President Trump’s recent visit to New Hampshire and eventually luck will run out if Republicans continue to hold events that do not stringently require attendants to wear masks and enforce social distancing guidelines.
Recently, Republicans have touted the fact that they are knocking on doors while Democrats instead of eschewed knocking on doors for safety concerns. Republicans have also touted the recent series of surrogate events in the state compared to the comparative lack of visits from the Biden/Harris campaign.
Buckley said that he has not received complaints regarding the lack of knocked doors, adding that New Hampshire Democrats have reached out to more voters overall than Republicans through phones and other remote methods.
He added that New Hampshire voters are more concerned about issues than candidate and surrogate visits. He also dismissed the effectiveness of New Hampshire Republicans, citing a recent absentee ballot application they sent to Pennsylvania.
“We’re running a very aggressive campaign here, that’s why we feel confident,” said Buckley. “Their campaign is a hot mess and we know what we’re doing here.”
