Vice President Mike Pence's visit to Minnesota's Mayo Clinic on Tuesday drew more jeers than cheers.
In settings where every person wore a mask in recognition of Mayo's pathogen control policy, Pence stood out like a sore thumb.
You can see coverage and reactions to Pence's defiance of Mayo Clinic rules here.
Pence Blasted For Defying Mayo Clinic Face Mask Rule During Visit | The 11th Hour | MSNBCyoutu.be
People called Pence's excuse of wanting to "look them in the eye" as his reason for not wearing a mask feeble at best. Many cited President Donald Trump's refusal to wear a mask the real reason Pence flouted Mayo's pandemic protocols.
On Wednesday morning, comedian and former late night host David Letterman weighed in.
In an appearance on Howard Stern's SiriusXM show, Letterman—a native of Indiana—said of Pence:
"This is particularly a thorn in my side because he used to be the governor of Indiana. I had nothing to do with that."
"If you're going to the Mayo Clinic because you have [the virus], you really have it. You're not going up there because you like the turn down service."
The fellow Indiana native pulled no punches when speaking about the former governor and current Vice President.
"And [Pence] goes up there—and he takes time off from his gig as a mannequin—and he's walking around without a mask taunting these poor people who are bedridden and wearing a mask."
Letterman added:
"To me thats just taunting people who are ill. To see that guy in his $40 suit walking through the Mayo Clinic without a mask."
The former late night staple shared the news that his longtime bandleader Paul Shaffer's wife had been confirmed to have the viral pathogen at the root of the global pandemic.
Letterman also addressed Trump's opposition to wearing masks, telling Stern:
"I have a buddy of mine who works at the state department, who's in charge of semi-secret information. And he told me that this whole thing with Trumpy and the mask, he won't wear a mask because they can't figure out how to attach it to his hair."
People agreed with Letterman's assessment of Pence.
Conservative outlet Breitbart News fired back at Letterman in Pence's defense.
Their salvo misfired however.
As of Wednesday, the number of confirmed cases in the United States reached 1.05 million—about a third of all cases on Earth. The death toll in the USA reached 60,474—over a quarter of all deaths from the pandemic. The United States accounts for only 4.2 percent of the people on Earth.
The book The Shadow President: The Truth About Mike Pence is available here.
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