Rep. Dan Crenshaw hammered former senior adviser to Barack Obama, Valerie Jarrett, for taking a politically opportunistic swipe at President Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Jarrett provided followers on Twitter an unsolicited take on how her former boss would be handling the crisis.
“Someone asked me today how would [Obama] have handled this crisis?” she wrote. “Answer in one word – better. Ok, two words. Much better.”
Crenshaw Fires Back
Crenshaw, a decorated Navy SEAL who lost his eye during his third tour of duty in Afghanistan and still went back for two more tours, took umbrage with Jarrett and Democrats in general for trying to exploit tragedy for political gain while simultaneously hurting the American people.
“Why do so many Obama administration staffers constantly try to make Americans feel awful?” he inquired.
“Highlighting policy differences is expected — but this level of vitriol? During this pandemic? Why?”
Something about a crisis and never letting it go to waste, we suspect.
Someone asked me today how would @BarackObama have handled this crisis? Answer in one word – Better. Ok, two words. Much better.
— Valerie Jarrett (@ValerieJarrett) April 1, 2020
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Obama Took Potshots
Perhaps Jarrett was encouraged to pile on because of her former boss. Or maybe it was Barack who actually asked her the question.
Because Obama also took to social media to deliver a potshot at President Trump for his handling of the coronavirus outbreak.
“We’ve seen all too terribly the consequences of those who denied warnings of a pandemic,” the former President wrote in discussing a completely unrelated topic. “We can’t afford any more consequences of climate denial.”
Why do so many Obama administration staffers constantly try to make Americans feel awful? Highlighting policy differences is expected – but this level of vitriol? During this pandemic? Why? https://t.co/PGkiOyScrV
— Dan Crenshaw (@DanCrenshawTX) April 2, 2020
RELATED: Dan Crenshaw Scorches Hillary Clinton On Cheap Joke
Much Worse
If Jarrett and Obama simply looked at his administration’s own efforts in anticipating and preparing for a pandemic, the two words she would have chosen would be “much worse.”
In 2009, the swine flu pandemic triggered a massive demand for respirators and masks, and Obama didn’t lift a finger to replenish the supply over the next seven years. This, despite warnings from multiple experts.
That same year Obama scrapped the White House Health and Security Office, which worked on international health issues.
Obama and his vice president, current Democrat presidential candidate Joe Biden, were busy viewing China as no threat to the United States.
“We talked about China,” Biden recalled. “I said China is not our problem.”
So the answer to Jarrett’s fictitious question can be found on the record. It isn’t pretty.
In fact, it may help explain why the Trump administration has been virtually handcuffed by the actions of his predecessor in dealing with the coronavirus today.
