As GOP Fights Science, Covid-19 Becomes America’s ‘Honey Badger’ Crisis

The new strains of Covid-19 are more dangerous and contagious, with Covid-19 surging in many parts of America as GOP leaders oppose safety restrictions. MSNBC’s Ari Melber reports on why “COVID don’t care” and why experts are imploring people to take a scientific, non-partisan approach to curbing the crisis.
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“The Beat with Ari Melber” covers politics, law and culture on MSNBC nightly at 6pm ET, anchored by Emmy-winning journalist and attorney Ari Melber (@arimelber). The Beat focuses on original reporting and in-depth interviews with a wide variety of guests, and was nominated for a 2020 Emmy in the Outstanding Interview category.

MSNBC delivers breaking news, in-depth analysis of politics headlines, as well as commentary and informed perspectives. Find video clips and segments from The Rachel Maddow Show, Morning Joe, Meet the Press Daily, The Beat with Ari Melber, Deadline: White House with Nicolle Wallace, All In, Last Word, 11th Hour, and more.

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87 comments

  1. We all knew this was going to happen. Not sure how this is surprising to anyone. The foundation of science is based on effort = both failures and successes. So, this is far from over and enjoy the ride.

    1. @John Clarke There is no flip-flopping on mask wearing. And if it’s just Fauci you’re worried about, look to other world leading doctors and epidemiologists and get a consensus.

    2. @John Clarke Oh and the common cold is NOT influenza. You should know that with your background in science, and all.

    3. @anthony acosta Let the innocent children and immunocompromised die? No thank you. The unvaccinated are taking the innocent down with them.

  2. Used to be that public health, safety and security mattered. Not so much anymore, apparently. Political football is so much more profitable, apparently.

    1. @Cindy Palmer There might be some truth to that. They sure seem to be incompetent, when dealing with crowds.

    2. @Sarah F. 4.2 Maybe Republicans get rich when people get sick from COVID? Perhaps they are “profiteering from COVID’ via investments, stock market, medical, pharmaceuticals… Maybe they want this on purpose / dual purpose / get rich, and thin the herd. $13K for an ICU patient night…

    3. right the fact that theses senators just blatantly lie to their own voters just to increase their donation contributions is just sad. Taking advantage of ignorant gullible people for profit.

  3. I live in Canada and I think that anyone who is unvaccinated who ends up in the ICU with COVID should have to pay out of pocket for the stay. Not my tax dollars. I did the responsible thing and got vaccinated.

    Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

    1. @Julie Miller Nope. Not experimental at all. This form of vaccine treatment has been around for a decade or more. This one is just specifically targeted at COVID-19. The real problem is that people have bought into the FDA and DEA’s profiteering form of bureaucracy. They drag out approvals for a reason. Someone, somewhere is making money. The fact is that most drugs are known to be safe and effective years before they are approved. Many that are know to be safe And effective all cover the world are stilll not approved for use in the US. That’s one of the reasons people travel abroad for certain treatments.

    2. @2558jmb Wearing a seatbelt doesn’t prevent you from dying in as car crash. wearing body armor doesn’t prevent you from being killed by a bullet. Condoms don’t always work. Nothing ids 100% effective.
      You can still get cavities if you brush your teeth. As you must know. So, I suppose you don’t brush your teeth? You can still die in a fire if you have a fire extinguisher, or if you call the fire department. So, you don’t use either, right?

    3. @2558jmb I’m not foolish. I’ve had my two jabs and *if* I do get covid, my illness, thanks to the jab, will be far less severe than it would have been otherwise. I just don’t understand why anti-vax people like you seem not to accept basic science. The proof worldwide, is that the vaccine works, so I don’t know what evidence you have, apart from some internet conspiracy theory, that it doesn’t.

  4. The man at the end of this video is sad evidence of the tragic gaslighting and misinformation going on. What does being a conservative have anything to do with whether or not you would get a vaccine? Oh wait…

    1. The only way to deal with this is for everyone to realize r religion is dead and the final push for it to die is in the form of covid-19 and the soon we get rid of the immature way of thinking we will stop killing each other and get down to living exploring making new discoveries but much like the Spanish Inquisition we’re stuck here for a while burn all the churches and get rid of all the religion people can search for God in their own way

    2. @888strummer Thank you for choosing science over propaganda, please spread the word of science to your conservative friends.

    3. @Reconquista: Hinduism I’m conservative and I couldn’t wait to get my shot. Being a conservative doesn’t mean you’re part of the trump cult.

  5. I have several favorite contributors on this channel, but Ari Melber is my fave. I love the expressions he gets on his face when someone is saying something psycho or when a reasonable person is saying something serious and grave. He is brilliant, intense, and funny. “Honey Badger don’t care and neither does COVID.” Indeed. : )

    1. My fave too. This guy has a brain as huge as his heart…that’s why I simply can’t fathom how people listen to TOXIC Tucker Carlson…when you can get the NEWS from someone as bright and educated as Ari Melber. The guy is pure gold.

    2. @Diego Fonseca I agree one thousand percent and would just add this. At the risk of being arrogant, a radical, left-wing, socialist, communist, oppressive, tyrannical Democrat, I honestly do not believe that people who watch the toxic guy have a brain. Well, they have the lizard brain part that tells them when to eat and go to the bathroom. Their frontal lobe, the part of the brain that reflects, considers, creates, organizes, hopes, imagines, etc., does not function with them. Maybe it once did, but too much FOX news probably destroyed that function. You realize, of course, that those psychos consider being an intellectual a sign of obvious elitism. Apparently, populism must necessarily be ignorant and stupid. Thanks for the reply. : )

  6. Question: When are people going to learn Covid-19 has no politics, no religion?

    Answer: When they are in the hospital dying.

    1. @Freddy Nakamura Way to use anecdotal evidence there, champ. I bet you were the brightest kid on the short bus, weren’t you?

  7. “…we were against getting the vaccine because we were strong conservative family…”

    USA is stupid in allowing a health decision to get turned into a political one.

    1. @anthony acosta if they’d do it in the privacy of their own home, don’t go out and infect other people, and don’t take up valuable resources at the hospital. Let em all drop dead for all I care.

  8. “We’re a strong conservative family.” Only in America are liberals considered weak. I hope that this poor guy pulls through…but I also wonder how, if Fox News can mock police who almost die, how they would mock this man, too. Don’t put it past Tucker Carlson. He’ll do it.

    1. @Daniel Hawthorn Question: Why doesn’t Trump do a public service announcement to promote his vaccine? He took it to save his own life. He created it (you called it the Trump Vaccine). He knows it’ll save lives and promote his creation. So why not do a promo? He’ll be a hero, no?

    2. @Louis Tully YOU can thank yourself if they shut everything down again. Vaccines help you not to get so sick and die but your smart next time don’t wear a seat belt either …

  9. Conservatives *don’t care* if he dies. He won’t get vaccinated after. They’ll *never admit* they were wrong about vaccines, COVID-19, or Trump. Best of luck bro, but *it has always sucked to be you.*

    1. @David You’ve learned “plenty”? I saw a guy step in a pile of “plenty” the other day.
      We talking about the same thing?

    2. @David your language speaks far more about how much is lacking in your education and reading in general, no matter how much you pretend that you don’t care about that poverty of experience.

  10. That was a very good analogy with the honey badger. It is also a patient animal. Just like Covid is waiting for you to decide if or when you will get the vaccine. Like the badger ; it will patiently wait for you to pop you head in the wrong place. I had to say goodbye to a hospitalized friend over the telephone. So sad

  11. As our President he completely failed when the county was facing a pandemic . Republicans failed us by allowing corporations to destroy the environment.

    1. 😂 oh yea and Biden is doing so much better lmffao. Biden and the dems are the most useless, pathetic america destroying government ever. If there’s anything left off America in 4 years can’t wait till he is no longer a pino so a real president can save America

  12. Where this guy went wrong, was when he made his decision based on politics, instead of science. And, he took advice from a politician instead of a doctor. Why are there so many stupid people?

    1. “People are stupid; given proper motivation, almost anyone will believe almost anything. Because people are stupid, they will believe a lie because they want to believe it’s true, or because they are afraid it might be true” – Terry Goodkind

    2. @Brock Samson LOL. The media planted the ant-science narrative years ago to divide the country. They did it so you would put your trust in Fauci instead of your own reasoning and research. Don’t trust anyone without many forms of evidence!

  13. “Strong, conservative family”? There’s nothing “strong” about being anti-science and gullible.

    1. What he meant to say was were a group of total morons and we deserve to suffer like this for being stupid.

    2. @Darrmad I love that I did not get polio in the 1950s like I could have. My Greatest Generation parents…the ones who actually made America greatest….thought it made sense to have me vaccinated in 1956 and 1963. It’s tragic that have chosen to not understand why Americans no longer

    3. @Detritiv0re Respectfully, his occupation and level of education are irrelevant. I know people with graduate level college degrees who have convinced themselves not to get the vaccine. The tribalism-over-common-sense-mindset is insidious. When your relatives and everyone you hang out with is telling you something that runs counter to the mainstream news, you have a choice to make. Research the differences of opinion and determine the truth for yourself – OR — take the easy, comfortable road and embrace what your tribe tells you to. It’s no coincidence that many of these anti-science, non-vaxxers are True Believer Evangelicals. Once you’ve been brainwashed, it’s easier to get dragged deeper down the rabbit hole….

  14. “We’re a strong, conservative family” has absolutely nothing to do with throwing your life away. For god’s sake, get the vaccine! (and then rethink this conservative nonsense. Everybody should be both conservative and liberal in their thinking…there’s a time for each. Wake up and be practical. It’s not a team sport).

    1. They are scared to admit that the party lied to them. Because if they admit that they were lied to they will immediately start questioning what else the Republican Party lied to them about, that would destroy their worldview

    1. Sorry to correct you. It’s not ignorance. It may have been ignorance at some point. It may have been willful ignorance at some point. They’ve been told repeatedly, in every possible way, from the kind and compassionate cajoling usually reserved for toddlers, to being called complete ant total idiots. They’ve been offered money and the thing they love more than their kids and Jesus on the cross: Guns. And they do not care. This is iidiocy. They deserve what they get. Everyone tried. They have a death wish. Let them have their wish. Strategize ways to keep yourself safe and give the idiots a wide berth. We can rebuild after they are gone. Their kids, the ones who survive, will be better off without them.

    2. How many liberals have died from this bioweapon that Fauci and the DOD helped fund? Oh, you’re too stupid to do the research. And believe what Fauci tells you. You’re a moron! We have drugs that could’ve saved lives last year. The government and Big Pharma blocked them!

    1. Or maybe it means “I do ONLY care about ME, MY money and My family. The rest of you – not My problem, why should I Care?

    2. Margrethe Christensen which doesn’t match up well with that whole identity of “strong conservative CHRISTIAN family!” The way these people act is not been taught in any Bible I’ve ever read. They follow their crazy preachers NOT the Bible! Insane!!

    3. Fauci funded a bioweapon and you still can’t figure it out. You’re in no position to call people dumb.

  15. Maybe Mr. Barker will be more open minded to universal health care once he starts getting those hospital bills.

  16. This new version of the Conservative movement that has come about in the last few decades has morphed into a something very sordid. It is now at the level of Jim Jones and Jonestown.

    1. @Paul Chang Jr.
      Ouch!
      U r correct.
      BTW, ur tone, very much like a strict grammar school teacher wearing cat eye glasses. U might want to rethink the whole proofreading the crazy world of internet posts. Jogging perhaps?

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