Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) tweeted that his course of treatment battling COVID-19 is up to him and his doctor — not “government bureaucrats.”
Funny, critics pointed out, that’s exactly what women want when it comes to reproductive health.
Gohmert, who is opposed to abortion rights and believes women should carry unwanted pregnancies to term, has been slammed on Twitter for defending his own health care choices since he tested positive Wednesday for COVID-19. His anti-abortion beliefs are on the extreme end of the spectrum. He once told a woman she should have carried her brain-dead fetus to term “just in case.”
Gohmert has decided to take hydroxychloroquine — the anti-malarial drug often touted by President Donald Trump. Studies have found that the drug has proven to be ineffective against the novel coronavirus. In some patients, it can trigger fatal heart arrhythmia.
Gohmert’s “pro-life” stance may also be undermined by the fact that he’s long refused to wear a mask to stem the spread of COVID-19 and protect lives. He insisted last month that he didn’t need a mask because he didn’t have the virus. Gohmert discovered he was COVID-19 positive when he was tested before a planned trip with Trump.
Bizarrely, he speculated that he may have contracted the virus because he has recently used a mask.
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) wished Gohmert well in a tweet Saturday, then added sarcastically: “And thank you for standing with millions of women who don’t want you coming between them and decisions they make with their doctor.”
That was a flood of similar responses:
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