OMG. Sometimes, given the state of politics today in America, the abbreviation for “oh my god” is all one needs to say.
Beto O’Rourke, aka Robert Francis O’Rourke, announced on Twitter over the weekend that he had fallen ill and was diagnosed with a bacterial infection, which prompted some on social media to mock the Democrat by suggesting he had contracted monkeypox. Of course, our fact-checking overlords could not allow such blasphemy against O’Rourke, given that he’s running for governor in the state of Texas.
“After feeling ill on Friday, I went to Methodist Hospital in San Antonio where I was diagnosed with a bacterial infection. The extraordinary team there — from custodians to nurses and doctors — gave me excellent care and attention, including IV antibiotics and rest,” O’Rourke tweeted on Sunday.
After feeling ill on Friday, I went to Methodist Hospital in San Antonio where I was diagnosed with a bacterial infection.
The extraordinary team there — from custodians to nurses and doctors — gave me excellent care and attention, including IV antibiotics and rest.
— Beto O’Rourke (@BetoORourke) August 28, 2022
“While my symptoms have improved, I will be resting at home in El Paso in accordance with the doctors’ recommendations,” he added. “I am sorry to have had to postpone events because of this, but promise to be back on the road with you as soon as I am able.”
Reuters felt compelled to fact-check a number of tweets from random accounts speculating that monkeypox was the real culprit, declaring there was “no evidence” to support the claims. Making the story even more bizarre, a spokesperson for O’Rourke proclaimed the jests are inaccurate.
“The claims are false. Doctors diagnosed Beto with a bacterial infection, which they treated with antibiotics. His symptoms continue to improve and he will be back on the road as soon as he is able,” the spokesperson told Reuters.
Proving you can’t get nothing past them, the news agency declared: “The claims and speculation do not cite a source, and a spokesperson for O’Rourke told Reuters that the claims are inaccurate.”
One America News Network host Jack Posobiec responded to the production thusly: “Omg”
— Jack Posobiec 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) August 30, 2022
Reuters also took care to point out that it has “previously addressed the false narrative that monkeypox can only be transmitted among men who have sex with men,” saying the virus can also “be transmitted through close contact, including touching surfaces that have previously been used by someone with monkeypox [and] contact with their respiratory secretions.”
For what it’s worth, men who have sex with men are at the highest risk of infection from monkeypox, according to the WHO, which noted that 99% of cases are among men, and at least 95% of those patients are men who have sex with other men.
As for Beto, he is married to a woman, Amy, and has three children — which means little these days, as Florida Democrat Andrew Gillum proved when he was found unconscious in a Miami Beach hotel with a male prostitute.
They are fact-checking jokes!
— libby emmons (@libbyemmons) August 30, 2022
So, monkeypox.
— Chef Andrew Gruel (@ChefGruel) August 30, 2022
Given his furry past, I wonder whether they’ve tested for kennel cough.
— President Doctor (@LDreeniatnuom) August 30, 2022
The fact that they mentioned monkeypox makes me ask questions. I honestly didn’t even think about it until I read to that part in the post.
— thebrick1 (@Nickthebrick19) August 30, 2022
Nah, it’s monkeypox…. Beto ‘Monkeypox’ O’Rourke is what we shall call him. Yep. Monkeypox O’Rourke works for me. pic.twitter.com/jYurFMOAUO
— Five Times August (@FiveTimesAugust) August 30, 2022
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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