San Antonio-Austin Congressman Chip Roy Just Can't Stop Saying Stupid Shit

click to enlarge San Antonio-Austin Congressman Chip Roy Just Can't Stop Saying Stupid Shit
Wikimedia Commons / Gage Skidmore
Even in the middle of an unparalleled national health crisis, inflammatory Republican U.S. Rep. Chip Roy just can't seem to help himself.

With the 24-hour U.S. death toll from COVID-19 surpassing 1,850 on Tuesday — a record for any country in a single day — most of us get that stay-at-home orders are a reasonable idea.

But not Roy.

During an interview with right-wing radio host Mark Levin on Monday, the congressman compared such orders, issued by both Republican and Democratic leaders across the country, to "Nazi Germany."

"We need more of that, we need more rational human beings that are going to step back and say 'No, this isn't a police state, this isn't Nazi Germany, this isn't Russia, we arent going to do that,'" Roy said. "What we are going to do is have more common sense discussions about what you can do to make things."

Always a leader of compassion and sensitivity, Roy hurled his latest bomb during the week of Passover. The comment seems designed to deepen partisan schisms as Americans of all faiths brace for what leaders warn will be the most emotionally wrenching week many of us will experience during our lifetimes.

Even Roy's former boss, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz has enough brains to take the novel coronavirus seriously, having self-quarantined after potential exposure to someone carrying the virus.

But, then, who ever accused Roy of having political smarts?

Since a skin-of-the-teeth 2018 victory to serve his district, the congressman has singlehandedly held up a disaster relief bill for Texas communities, voted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act and staged a phony-baloney border security roundtable at which far-right propaganda outlet Brietbart News was the only invited "media."

And let's not forget, Roy last month voted against the bipartisan coronavirus relief package. As millions of Americans lost their jobs amid the crisis, he mocked the bill on Twitter as "welfare" that would "do more harm than good."

Naturally, it didn't take long for Roy's Democratic opponent, former Texas Sen. Wendy Davis, to seize on his latest remarks.

“Congressman Chip Roy has repeatedly shown he is part of the problem, not the solution, and his comparison of stay at home orders supported by Republican and Democratic leaders across the country to ‘Nazi Germany’ is the latest example of his profound lack of judgment," Davis said.

"Congressman Roy’s approach to this pandemic would endanger public health, cost more lives, and further set back our economy," she added. "The congressman should spend less time on radio shows comparing mayors and judges to ‘dictators’ and spend more time working to make sure Texans are getting the critical medical and economic support they need.”

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Sanford Nowlin

Sanford Nowlin is editor-in-chief of the San Antonio Current.

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