It is a 100% racist comment. Not even Trump would go this far. It should be major story. But it isn’t. Where is the outrage from Democrats? Where is the outrage in general?
Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said unvaccinated African Americans — not lax coronavirus precautions in states like his — are responsible for the surge in Covid-19 cases in his state.
“The Covid is spreading, particularly most of the numbers are with the unvaccinated, and the Democrats like to blame Republicans on that,” Patrick told Fox News host Laura Ingraham in an interview Thursday night. “Well, the biggest group in most states are African Americans who have not been vaccinated. Last time I checked, over 90 percent of them vote for Democrats in their major cities and major counties, so it’s up to the Democrats to get … as many people vaccinated.”
Ingraham had asked Patrick, who has previously blamed undocumented immigrants for the rise in cases, to respond to charges that his and Gov. Greg Abbott’s policies are to blame for the spike that has over 12,000 Texans hospitalized.
African Americans, who have had lower rates of vaccinations, make up about 13 percent of the state population and about 16 percent of cases, while whites and Hispanics, who make up more than 80 percent of the population, have accounted for about 70 percent of cases, according to statistics from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Fantastic analysis:
Facts First: Just on raw numbers, Black people, at about 13% of the total population, are not the “biggest group” of unvaccinated people either in Texas or across the US. An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that White adults account for the largest share of unvaccinated adults. Even if we dive into the rates, the implication from Patrick that Black people are especially to blame for spreading the virus is not accurate.
According to data analyzed by KFF, Black people made up over 50% of positive Covid cases in only two of the 35 analyzed places as of August 16: the District of Columbia and Mississippi. Specifically, in Patrick’s state of Texas, Black people represent 15% of cases, Hispanics 52% and White people 32%.
In his response to CNN, Patrick’s office pointed to a Facebook post from the Lieutenant Governor which incorrectly claimed “Federal and State data clearly indicate that Black vaccination rates are significantly lower than White or Hispanic rates.”
And, of course, Patrick made the comment while appearing on racist FOX host Laura Ingraham’s show.
The 99 Percenters 