Former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge calls protesters 'self-absorbed and selfish'
Former Republican Governor of Pennsylvania Tom Ridge, who also served as the Homeland Security secretary under President George W. Bush, said recently that armed protesters demonstrating against coronavirus lockdown orders are selfish and not heroes.
Ridge, who fought in the Vietnam War and earned the Bronze Star for Valor, wrote in an op-ed in USA Today that “selfish protests against stay-at-home orders dishonor America’s veterans.”
The Erie native went as far as saying that protesters, who have been having rallies against stay-at-home guidelines across the country, “makes my blood boil.”
“These self-absorbed and selfish Americans complain they are irritated, anxious, bored, upset — unhappy that their lives have been affected by this temporary restraint on their freedoms,” Ridge wrote. “Some have even gotten into confrontations with nurses and other front-line health care workers who believe now is not the time to resume normality.”
Ridge claimed the nation can prevail if everyone works together.
“Politics be damned. No time for it now. We can sort it out later. Same team. Same fight. Let’s get on with it.”
Protesters in Michigan, some carrying guns, flooded the state Capitol demanding an end to stay-at-home orders.
Many didn't wear masks or follow social distancing rules. pic.twitter.com/c4A38ncUyB
— AJ+ (@ajplus) May 3, 2020
Bret Gibson is a TribLive digital producer. A South Hills resident, he started working for the Trib in 1998. He can be reached at bgibson@triblive.com.
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