Trump was famously known for warning about Mexican rapists when he launched his presidential campaign. The focus on migrants was almost like listening to his greatest hits over and over. It's the 2021 version for the immigrant caravans.All this is happening while public health officials desperately try to keep the spotlight on the urgent need of more vaccines. Some Republicans like Mitch McConnell and Mike Pence have joined the chorus in urging Americans to get shots. But the most prominent and popular message, which comes from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and others, is that no disease is too dangerous to be ignored.Except when someone else can blame the disease.The specter that disease-infected immigrants are a real threat to public health has been seized upon by conservative media with remarkable unity and an astonishing lack of evidence.Fox's Sean Hannity stated that the largest super-spreader event in the pandemic is at the border, rather than lack of vaccines. Ben Shapiro's Daily Wire warned about COVID-Positive Ilegal Immigrants Flushing Across The Border.In May, the conservative Washington Examiner published a cover story declaring that COVID was over. The cover story was captioned "Get Over It." It also featured a photo of a mask being lit. The Examiner, just like other right-wing publications is now over it and focuses on illegal immigrants, an issue they can't get over. One headline reads: Biden's hypocrisy threatens American lives at the southern border This inconsistent, incoherent policy is a threat to both public health as well as the rule of law. It will lead to innocent deaths.Wall Street Journal columnist also contributed: If Biden is Serious About Covid Hell Protect the Border.One viral Facebook post stated: The COVID Delta variant is so deadly that Biden is restricting American travel to Mexico, but leaving the border open for illegal aliens to enter our country.Factcheck.org pointed out that neither of the major points was correct. Biden has not implemented any travel restrictions for Americans traveling to Mexico since July when the delta variant was dominant in the U.S. His administration enforces existing immigration laws.The administration stated earlier this week that it will continue to expel migrants quickly from the U.S. citing the spreading of the delta variant. Despite some missteps in border policy, fact-checkers found that Title 42 saw more than 500,000 expulsions between February and June. This was the law Trump used to expel the migrants to stop the spread of the pandemic.Infected migrants are not enough to explain the true reality of the pandemic that is spreading across the country. It has many different causes. It is actually the states of the interior, such as Arkansas and Missouri that pose the greatest danger to their citizens and unvaccinated Americans.These facts are not likely to stop the GOP's campaign to blame the crisis at the border. The message seems to be spreading among Americans who are not vaccinated. A recent Axios survey found that 39% of unvaccinated Americans blame foreigners for the rise in Covid-19-related cases. These poll numbers are a political opportunity for the GOP and even officials who had previously downplayed this pandemic have gotten on board quickly.After President Joe Biden had criticized him for standing in his way of mitigation efforts being made, the Florida Governor. Ron DeSantis retorted on Wednesday: Why don't you do your work? he asked. You should secure this border. You won't hear anything about Covid until that happens, thank you.DeSantis, who now claims that 1 in 5 Covid cases are from his state, also accused Biden of facilitating the spread. DeSantis insists that there are hundreds of thousands of people crossing the border every month. He has also banned vaccine passports and threatened with withholding state funds from schools that require masks. They are not only letting them through but they are also farming them all over the country, putting their passengers on planes and buses.Florida does not have a border with Mexico, but that is not surprising. Texas, however, does share a border with Mexico. The GOP in Texas is focused on the threat from Central American and Mexican immigrants.Senator Ted Cruz (R.Texas), said that rising Covid rates were not due to unvaccinated Texans, as there were 9,000,000 eligible as of August 1, but rather to foreigners. Biden declared that he wants to allow more COVID-positive illegal immigrants. This is absurd.Chip Roy (Republican from Texas) called for Biden's impeachment on the border issue. We are now saying: Oh, we will have to wear masks to the House floor, but we won't do anything to stop people crossing our border," he complained to Tucker Carlson, Fox News host.Texas has made this rhetoric policy. It highlights the contrast between the GOP's laissez-faire approach and its passion for blaming migrants and the GOP's new obsession with the pandemic. Texas Governor. Greg Abbott directed state troopers to target vehicles suspected of carrying migrants infected if they were located.Freedom! They were quickly locked up!A federal judge temporarily blocked the order after the U.S. Department of Justice sued. But Abbott continued to be determined. Abbott stated in a statement that the Biden Administration had knowingly and willfully released COVID-19-positive migrants into Texas communities, posing a risk of infection to Texas residents.This is all deeply cynical but also familiar. Some Republicans fall back into their familiar comfort zone of identity politics, the familiar narratives about fearsome foreigners, and the need to build big walls by focusing on the border. It gives them an immediate advantage over Biden and deflects attention away from their reckless policies.It's a familiar playbook that works well with donors and the base.In a fundraising email, DeSantis stated that Joe Biden's open border policies are doing more to facilitate the transmission of COVID across America than any elected official. This was immediately after DeSantis' press conference. The pandemic is still on the rise, even though the GOP believes that inflaming outrage about the immigration crisis is a political win.We will unfortunately have to count the human consequences of their wager.
