Denver city councilwoman Candi CdeBaca was hit with calls to resign Tuesday after she showed support for a tweet floating the idea of attending Make America Great Again rallies to infect Trump supporters with the coronavirus.
Ms. CdeBaca tweeted “#solidarity Yaaas!!” in her Feb. 28 response to a Feb. 26 post from Susan Daniel, who tweeted, “For the record, if I do get the coronavirus I’m attending every MAGA rally I can.”
The councilwoman’s office issued a statement saying her reply was “sarcastic” after she drew thousands of outraged responses on social media, as well as a call from the Colorado Republican Party to resign.
“Councilwoman CdeBaca made a sarcastic tweet on Twitter to call attention to the Trump administration’s downplaying of the Coronavirus outbreak as a ‘hoax’ no more dangerous than the common flu,” said the statement on Fox31 in Denver.
Democrats have accused President Trump of describing the virus as a “hoax,” while he has countered that he was referring to Democratic efforts to politicize his administration’s response the global flu-like illness.
“Rather than conservative outlets making a four-day-old Tweet their focus on Super Tuesday, they should focus their energy on demanding a competent Federal response to this public health crisis instead,” said the statement.
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Ms. CdeBaca, who has said she identifies with democratic socialism and anarchism, was elected in June. The Daniel tweet has since been deleted, but Ms. CdeBaca’s reply still appears on her Twitter feed.
Colorado Republican Party executive director Lx Fangonilo said in a statement that the councilwoman should “resign immediately.”
“Councilwoman CdeBaca praising a social media post calling for Trump supporters to be infected with the coronavirus is simply disgusting,” said the GOP statement. “There can be no room in our politics for wishing harm on Americans who have different political beliefs. Democrats in Colorado and across the country need to condemn this evil statement.”
Democrat Denver Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca says that she stands in “solidarity” with someone who says that they if they get the coronavirus that they will attend as many Trump rallies as possible
— Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) March 3, 2020
She appears to have made the statement on her government Twitter account https://t.co/YySSLhcNBZ pic.twitter.com/fJV0nJycHR
You are in need of medical help. Please seek a doctor who can help you extinguish the hate in your heart. Vile.
— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) March 3, 2020
SEE ALSO: U.S. coronavirus death toll rises to 9
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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