Yahoo Movies Gov. Ron DeSantis Mocked For Comparing Reopening Schools To Shopping At Walmart
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis really got schooled by Twitter users Thursday after he compared opening schools to the pleasures of shopping at a big-box retailer.
The Republican governor argued that distance learning has caused Florida students to suffer an “education gap” and urged school districts to consider opening brick-and-mortar schools for the 2020-’21 academic year.
“I want our kids to be able to minimize this education gap that I think has developed,” DeSantis said, according to local station WPTV. He added: “In spite of good efforts with the online, it’s just not the same. So I worry about that gap.”
The state has 232,718 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Thursday ― an increase of 8,935 cases from the day before ― but DeSantis tried to minimize the risk of exposure kids might face.
“If you can do Home Depot, if you can do Walmart, if you can do these things, you absolutely can do the schools,” the governor said.
“If you can do Home Depot, if you can do Walmart, you can definitely do the schools.” pic.twitter.com/RwGgyHs93y
— Daniel Uhlfelder (@DWUhlfelderLaw) July 9, 2020
But many Twitter users weren’t impressed by DeSantis’ comparison ― for obvious reasons.
Did I somehow miss the true Home Depot experience? I didn’t realize Home Depot packed 35 people together in a room for 6 hours a day.#ThursdayThoughts https://t.co/qYrvw0FoeU
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) July 9, 2020
Does Ron Desantis spend six hours in Home Depot and play tag with his fellow shoppers? https://t.co/5bV6zyeYrg
— Michael Cohen (@speechboy71) July 9, 2020
Are people hanging out at Home Depot and Walmart from 8am-2pm five days a week?
— Coronavirus Mask Force (@Tricia_Braun) July 9, 2020
And do they crowd together yelling at each other? Do they all share material? Do they hold each other and play games together? Do they share candy? Do they wipe snot on each other at these stores?
It’s not an acceptable comparison & he knows it but he’s got to push the narrative pic.twitter.com/ksRwQShYEU— Liz 🇵🇷🇩🇴🇺🇸🏳️🌈🏴☠️🏁⚓️😷💋🌊 (@lizazzzl) July 9, 2020
If Home Depot packed 35 people into a space 1% the size of their stores for six hours.
— JRehling (@JRehling) July 9, 2020
Schools are going to deliver education curbside this fall?
— LadyLiberty2016 (@LadyLiberty_16) July 9, 2020
Who among us hasn't spent all day sitting at a desk in Home Depot, with someone breathing COVID-19 on us?
Really...Ron DeSantis is THE most stupid Florida Man. https://t.co/WNB77gJa4A— BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@mmpadellan) July 9, 2020
But while many Twitter users were content to call out DeSantis for attempting to put the lives of Florida students at risk of contracting COVID-19, at least one person had a more pressing concern about the governor.
I know there are more important things happening but every time I see Ron DeSantis I am distracted by the fact that he looks like a 2nd grader dressed for their first communion https://t.co/yFhcOqRifu
— Tim Miller (@Timodc) July 9, 2020
Related...
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As Florida COVID-19 Cases Skyrocket, State Orders All Schools To Reopen Next Month
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
