Republican state House Speaker Thom Tillis slammed the Obama administration for picking a “political operative” instead of a medical expert as its ‘Ebola Czar.’
“President Obama is making it clear that he is more concerned about political optics than he is about addressing this crisis and keeping the American people safe,” Tillis said Monday. “Sen. [Kay] Hagan continues to lead from behind and has even praised President Obama and the CDC despite their countless errors in handling the spread of Ebola.”
Last week, amid a series of serious missteps in the handling of the first Ebola outbreak in the United States, the Obama administration tapped Ron Klain, a former chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden, to be the administration’s Ebola Response Coordinator.
Tillis is in a tight race for U.S. Senate against incumbent Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC). Tillis was one of the first candidates nationwide to call for a travel ban from Ebola-stricken countries. Hagan, on the other hand, had been offering confused positions about the matter, at first being open to a travel ban as part of the strategy, then saying such a ban would not work, then finally issuing a statement calling for a ban.
The Tillis campaign has jumped on her flip-flop as part of her ongoing failure as a leader, separate from Obama.
“America is in desperate need of competent leadership willing to cast politics aside to address the serious threats confronting our nation, and it is becoming increasingly evident that we will never find that leadership from President Obama or Sen. Hagan,” Tillis added.
A new poll out Monday from Gravis Marketing shows Tillis up against Hagan 48 percent to 43 percent. The poll is a bit of an outlier, however; most polls have Tillis and Hagan neck and neck but with Tillis on the upswing.
A recent plea for campaign cash from the Hagan campaign found Hagan expressing distress that “Rasmussen moved our race to a ‘Toss Up'” from one that “Leans Dem.” The Real Clear Politics Average has Hagan with a 0.7 percent lead.