Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) received harsh criticism after the senator said he would not be attending President Joe Biden’s State of the Union Address over COVID-19 testing.
Rubio told HuffPost’s Igor Bobic, “I don’t have time to go take a COVID test today. I only take a test if I’m sick.”
Rubio says he won’t attend Biden’s State of the Union address tomorrow because of the COVID testing requirement.
— Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) February 28, 2022
“I don’t have time to go take a COVID test today. I only take a test if I’m sick,” he says
Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) agreed with Rubio and also said he would not be attending.
Same. I will not attend. https://t.co/9OIkoLMrCW
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) March 1, 2022
Several users on Twitter took the opportunity to blast Rubio:
While Ukrainians fight off Russian tanks with molotov cocktails @marcorubio won't even do his paying job because it requires a COVID test. When the GOP tells you they are tough on anything…just remember they think having to wear a mask and get a shot is too much sacrifice.
— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) March 1, 2022
does…does Marco Rubio not know…what a COVID test is?? https://t.co/QwB5zWurM4
— Jason Linkins (@dceiver) March 1, 2022
https://twitter.com/JoyAnnReid/status/1498679047517310986
History will look back on this period and write often of those who just couldn’t find it in them to make even the simplest of sacrifices for their fellow citizens. https://t.co/HsieOYwxHU
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) March 1, 2022
https://twitter.com/ArthurDelaneyHP/status/1498475885820891137
It takes like two minutes. https://t.co/e4Zv6mRxse
— melissa “cancelled student debt” byrne (@mcbyrne) March 1, 2022
During an interview with Newsmax, Rubio said he was “tired of all the COVID theater crap.”
He told the outlet, “I’ll watch the replays on television. I don’t need to sit there and go through all of that just to make them feel good about how safe they’re being.”
According to The New York Times, the president will focus on the economy and the world’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said during an interview with ABC News on Sunday, “I think there’s no question that in the State of the Union, the American people and anybody watching around the world will hear the president talk about the efforts he has led over the past several months to build a global coalition to fight against the autocracy and the efforts of President Putin to invade a foreign country.”
She continued, “But what people will also hear from President Biden is his optimism and his belief in the resilience of the American people and the strength of the American people.”
Additionally, Psaki told the network the president would discuss “what we all have to look forward to.”