U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, a Windsor Republican and chair of the Colorado Republican Party, believes the country is panicked and overreacting to the coronavirus outbreak due to a lack of leadership from both major political parties.
“You don’t shut restaurants down for 30 days,” Buck said in an interview Wednesday, referring to a policy enacted in Colorado and many other states.
“I have no problem with (stopping) sporting events or things that don’t impact our civil liberties and don’t impact everyday life. Those are things that I think we can suspend for a period of time. But it’s just craziness to shut down businesses or parts of the economy that are absolutely necessary,” the congressman added.
Buck says elderly Americans and those with serious health conditions are rightly concerned about the virus and that the government must act swiftly to help them. But the decision by government officials to shutter stores and restaurants is a panicked overreaction that will do great damage to the nation’s economy, he said.
“We don’t have a leader. It was FDR who said, ‘The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.’ We need leaders to stand up and say we’re going to have a measured response,” said Buck, who is usually a defender of President Donald Trump.
