Jim Bognet, a former Donald Trump administration official and Pennsylvania eighth district Republican candidate, said on Monday that Pennsylvania Democrat Gov. Tom Wolf should either resign or face articles of impeachment if he will not reopen up Pennsylvania.

Several Pennsylvania counties have decided to reopen their economies in defiance of Wolf’s decision to keep much of the state locked down.

In response, Wolf called many of those public officials “cowardly.”

The Pennsylvania Democrat said, “To those politicians who decide to cave in to this coronavirus, they need to understand the consequences of their cowardly act.”

Bognet, who hopes to unseat Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA), said that Wolf’s lockdown has been a “disaster” for millions of Pennsylvanians. In light of Wolf’s opposition to reopening the state, Bognet said that Wolf should either leave the office of the governor or be impeached.

“@GovernorTomWolf‘s lockdown has been a disaster. Millions of Pennsylvanians lost jobs & losing hope, 1000s dead in nursing homes,” Bognet charged. “If Wolf won’t open up PA QUICKLY & SAFELY he should resign or face articles of impeachment.”

He added, “@RepCartwright is AWOL as #PA08 hurts. Both need to go!”
Bognet was also ahead of the curve on the coronavirus pandemic. Bognet and Matt Mowers, another former Trump administration official, were two of the first politicians to come out in favor of a travel ban from China.

Bognet also slammed Wolf for keeping the state closed to the detriment of Pennsylvanians.

“@GovernorTomWolf is an absolute disgrace to the people of Pennsylvania, especially to those hurting in #PA08,” Bognet wrote. “Small businesses are struggling to stay open and pay their employees. Wolf’s reaction? Threaten local communities to enforce his dictatorial orders.”

Other Pennsylvania Republicans slammed Wolf.

Rep. Fred Keller said that Wolf “surrendered” to the coronavirus.

He said:

Trying to feed your family is not “cowardly.” The vast majority of Pennsylvanians rely on their jobs to put food on the table and pay their bills. Because of Gov. Wolf’s prolonged shutdown order, nearly 2 million Pennsylvanians, or 26 percent of our state’s workforce, are unemployed, and overdose and suicide deaths are rising. Pennsylvanians have shown they can safely shop and work in mega-retailers while the Governor unilaterally keeps small businesses closed and is now threatening them if they re-open. Despite what Gov. Wolf believes, Pennsylvania’s small business owners and workers are smart enough to operate safely and feed their families.

By constantly moving the goalposts and not allowing Pennsylvanians the option of supporting themselves, he is denying Pennsylvanians their freedom, exacerbating the societal effects of this virus, and creating a situation where the cure is worse than the disease.”

“The only person who has surrendered to the virus is Gov. Wolf,” Keller added.

Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.