Missouri's GOP governor buried for 'dishonest and dangerous' COVID rhetoric in scathing local newspaper editorial

Bob Brigham
July 22, 2021

Gov Mike Parson on Facebook.

The Republican governor of Missouri was the focus of a hard-hitting editorial by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Thursday.

Only Arkansas and Florida have higher per-capita coronavirus infection rates, and the editors at the Post-Dispatch laid blame for this squarely at the feet of GOP Gov. Mike Parson.

"Gov. Mike Parson, embarrassed by another spike in Missouri's coronavirus infections, has once again resorted to his stock response: Shoot the messenger," the newspaper began. "Parson on Wednesday singled out the Post-Dispatch, The Kansas City Star and the Missouri Independent nonprofit news site for spreading 'propaganda' about the delta variant that's raging across the state."

The paper went on to show how data culled from hospitals across the state could not possibly be "propaganda."

"It's a curious allegation, given that the data these and other credible news organizations have reported comes from official figures about new coronavirus infections, hospitalizations and deaths. That data for this supposed propaganda originates with Parson's own government," the editorial board explained.

The editorial board warned Parson's approach would cause more death.

"Parson's deft shifting of blame from his own end of the political spectrum isn't quite as irresponsible as the behavior of Fox News or of some of Parson's own fellow elected Republicans. But the more their base of followers is encouraged to distrust solid information from mainstream sources, the more likely those followers are to embrace the flurry of dangerous lies coming from the right. The result being more vaccination reluctance followed by more deaths and hospitalizations from the coronavirus," the St. Louis Post-Dispatch cautioned.

In addition, The Kansas City Star also editorialized about Parson.

"Shots at us are fine, but not when they undermine this simple message: Get the shot," the editorial board urged.