- GOP Senator Marsha Blackburn defends Neanderthals after Biden called some states’ decisions to lift mask mandates “Neanderthal thinking.”
- “Neanderthals are hunter-gatherers, they are protectors of their family, they are resilient, inventive and prone to their own,” Blackburn said.
- Lawmakers and members of the public mocked Blackburn, pointing out that Neanderthals had become extinct.
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Tennessee Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn is defending Neanderthals after President Joe Biden criticized Texas and Mississippi for lifting their mask mandates and called the ruling ‘Neanderthal thinking’.
“I hope everyone now realizes that these masks are making a difference,” Biden told reporters on Wednesday. “The last thing we need is the Neanderthal who thinks everything is fine in the meantime, take off your mask, forget it. It still matters.”
In a Fox Business interview Thursday morning, Blackburn suggested that it’s actually a good thing to be called a Neanderthaler.
“Neanderthals are hunter-gatherers, they are protectors of their family, they are resilient, they are inventive, they are prone to their own,” the GOP senator said. said. “So, I think Joe Biden needs to rethink what he’s saying.”
Shortly after she made the remark, fellow lawmakers and members of the public mocked Blackburn, pointing out that her use of the present time is incorrect as the Neanderthal people became extinct.
—Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) March 4, 2021
—Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) March 4, 2021
—Susan J. Demas (@sjdemas) March 4, 2021
—Emily C. Singer (@CahnEmily) March 4, 2021
The president stressed on Wednesday that it was “critical” for officials to “follow science”.
“Wash your hands – warm water, do it regularly – wear a mask and stay socially removed,” he told reporters. “I know you all know that. I would like to know that some of our elected officials knew that. ‘
States across the country have begun easing their COVID-19 restrictions as the country continues to see a decline in new cases and hospitalizations. Biden also announced earlier this week that Johnson & Johnson is partnering with rival pharmaceutical giant Merck to expand J & J’s vaccine production.
Because of the partnership, Biden said, the U.S. is on track to have enough vaccine doses for every American adult by the end of May.
Biden added that he hopes the country will be back to normal “by this time next year”. But he stressed that Americans “must continue to be smart” about following COVID-19 guidelines.