Good news. It’s now dangerous to gather outside again because of COVID. No, all those massive protests and riots we’ve seen the last several days in Wisconsin and Minneapolis weren’t the catalyst for the sudden shift in narrative. Instead, it was President Trump having the audacity to have a crowd on the South Lawn for his RNC finale. Everything always comes back to the orange man.

Instead of remaining consistent and claiming that outdoor gatherings are inherently safe, as the media have done with the protests, Jake Tapper got supremely triggered and started ranting about “life and death” while also nodding to nonsense about the Hatch Act.

Reaction to images from South Lawn of WH, where 1500+ are gathering, no masks, distancing, or mass testing from @ashishkjha of @Harvardgh “This is deeply irresponsible. It goes against all that we know about keeping people safe. We should expect better from our national leaders.” pic.twitter.com/DRfrYs7BNK

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) August 28, 2020

From the beginning of the GOP convention on Monday until 5 pm ET today, 3,688 people in the U.S. died from coronavirus. More than died on 9/11 — just since the convention began.

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) August 28, 2020

One of the more frustrating aspects of the right is watching otherwise good commentators try to suck up to this guy. He’s as much of a political hack as any other voice on CNN, but he often gets labeled a “good journalist” because he once gave some tough interviews like ten years ago. If Tapper had an ounce of consistency and levity in his coverage, he’d have been decrying the most recent protests as super spreader events that should stop. Instead, his network was too busy calling them “mostly peaceful” while buildings literally burned in the background.

The politicization of the coronavirus grew old long ago. People are sick of the double standards and partisan decision making regarding gatherings. If Al Sharpton can march on Washington tomorrow, people can go to church, to a restaurant, or to the RNC if they so choose. Instead of being a voice of sanity, the media have been a voice of oppression. Why? Because they want Democrats to win in November and don’t want Republicans to succeed in any venue.

On that note, this is how you know the RNC has been a huge success. These cable networks have been reduced to crying about mask wearing while outdoors again. They’ve got nothing else at this point. It’s actually pretty pathetic.

(Please follow me on Twitter!!! @bonchieredstate)