GOP lawmaker breaks 'first rule of whataboutism' with vaccine complaint

published 22 July 2021

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) just broke the first rule of whataboutism — don't ask questions you don't know the answers to.

During a GOP doctors press conference on Thursday, Jackson erroneously accused the media of unfairly neglecting to ask Democratic lawmakers about their vaccination status the way they do Republicans. But what Jackson seems to have forgotten, noted writer James Surowiecki, is that liberal lawmakers across both chambers of Congress have a 100 percent vaccination rate, per CNN.

Jackson went on to say "I highly doubt" all six of the Texas Democrats who tested positive for COVID-19 (and appear to have started a small Capitol outbreak) are vaccinated. Unfortunately for him, all reportedly are.

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Better luck next time, Jackson.

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Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.