In a video posted on Truth Social, Former President Donald Trump criticized what he referred to as “left-wing lunatics” for fear-mongering about new COVID-19 variants.
He accused them of using this tactic to justify the reintroduction of lockdowns and mandate policies, as well as to rig the 2024 election. President Trump emphasized that their actions would play into the hands of those seeking to exploit COVID-19 restrictions for political purposes.
President Trump stated, “The left-wing lunatics are trying very hard to bring back COVID lockdowns and mandates with all of their sudden fear-mongering about the new variants that are coming.” He highlighted the recent surge of media reports regarding a new COVID-19 variant and President Biden’s suggestion that Americans may need booster shots.
According to President Trump, his political opponents are eager to leverage the COVID-19 “hysteria” for their own political ends. He claimed that their goals include justifying more lockdowns, censorship, illegal drop boxes, mail-in ballots, and financial payoffs to their political allies leading up to the 2024 election. President Trump further alleged that the 2020 election was rigged and warned that they are attempting to do the same in the upcoming election by exploiting the pandemic.
The former president has consistently maintained that he was denied victory in the 2020 election due to last-minute changes to election rules, which he believed facilitated potential voter fraud through mail-in ballots. Although many of his election-related lawsuits were dismissed, primarily on technical grounds, conservative commentators have pointed to the recent surge in COVID-19-related media reporting and its potential impact on civil liberties and the upcoming election.
Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, claimed there is a plot to push “COVIDian tyranny” and impose lockdowns in time for the election to facilitate a “Marxist-type revolution.” Former Congressman Ron Paul echoed similar sentiments in an op-ed on LewRockwell.com, asserting that the threat of the new COVID-19 variant is being amplified to gain control, drawing parallels to the changes seen in the 2020 election.
President Trump delivered a powerful response to these concerns, vowing not to comply with COVID-related restrictions. He stated, “We will not shut down our schools, we will not accept your lockdowns, we will not abide by your mask mandates, and we will not tolerate your vaccine mandates.” The former president also pledged to use his authority if elected in 2024 to push back against mask and vaccine mandates, even suggesting cutting federal funding to colleges and airlines that enforce such mandates.
It is worth noting that President Trump’s remarks come amid a rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations across the country, along with the emergence of new variants. Multiple drug companies have introduced vaccines targeting these variants, but their effectiveness against transmission remains uncertain. President Biden has requested additional funding for a new vaccine, while CDC officials anticipate that the vaccines will be available to the public in mid-September, pending FDA approval.
The CDC advisory committee is scheduled to meet on September 12 to vote on recommended eligibility guidelines for the new COVID-19 shots.
