Cunningham Attacks Religious Organizations Instead of China in New COVID-19 Plan | Eastern North Carolina Now

Press Release:

    RALEIGH, N.C.     Yesterday, career politician and lifelong political opportunist Cal Cunningham released "a list of priorities" for the next steps that should be taken on COVID-19. Cunningham's collection of Democratic talking points and vague platitudes made zero mention of concrete measures to hold China accountable for their role in the spread of the virus. In fact, Cunningham is still claiming China may not be to blame for the economic and physical devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, even when we know that:

• Had China told the truth and acted only three weeks earlier, cases of the virus could have been cut by 95 percent.
• China arrested and silenced the doctor who first warned about the virus, ordered test samples destroyed, curtailed efforts to develop preventative measures, and repeatedly downplayed the potential for human to human transmission, despite having clear evidence to the contrary.

    Instead of advocating for punitive measures against the Communist Party of China like Senator Tillis did in his 18-point plan to hold China accountable, Cunningham's plan attacks religious institutions. It calls for an investigation on why 18 tons of PPE was shipped to China in February, even though fact checkers at the Washington Post have already noted that those supplies were donated by North Carolinian Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse.

    "Cal Cunningham's refusal to support actions to hold China accountable in his new COVID-19 plan should come as no surprise given his soft-on-china-record on trade," said NCGOP spokesman Tim Wigginton. "What is shocking and appalling, however, is that Cunningham continues to attack North Carolina religious organizations for lending a hand during a pandemic, making it clear that he thinks government should have the power to steal from the collection baskets of the North Carolina faith based community because he thinks he knows how to better spend their money."

• Contact: Tim Wigginton
•     communications@ncgop.org