I knew it was going to be a popular take. I think there are a shit ton of people in this country that are a dangerous combination of A) stupid and B) irrationally distrustful of things like the federal government, science, medicine and education. They were both consumers and purveyors of disinformation related to the pandemic and they are who made the pandemic what it was in this country. They are who filled the covid death stat sheet for the US. They were going to be stupid, distrustful and not follow guidelines and mandates regardless of who was elected in 2016. Do you all honestly think Joe Dirt would have happily practiced social distancing, masked up when out and taken the vaccine like a good citizen if Hilary Clinton or Joe Biden was in the White House being all Presidential and shit? Fuck no.
Has the Republican party done a lot to ensure we have an unhealthy population of manipulatable idiots that are irrationally distrustful of societal institutions like government, science, health care and education? Absolutely. But Donald Trump wasn't involved with the Republican Party before 2015 or so and the post I responded to stated Donald Trump should be held criminally liable for covid deaths in the US. I still completely disagree. January 6th, yes. Georgia vote manufacturing pressure, yes. Covid deaths, no.