Rudy Giuliani falsely claims that 'people don't die' of COVID-19 anymore
Rudy Giuliani, President Trump's personal lawyer and the former mayor of New York City, told a crowd in Philadelphia on Monday that people are no longer dying of the coronavirus — a statement that is not at all true.
Giuliani made the outrageous claim during a Columbus Day celebration with Italian American Trump supporters. "People don't die of this disease anymore," he said. "Young people don't die at all. Middle-aged people die very little. And even elderly people have a 1 percent chance of dying."
At least 214,000 Americans of all ages have died of the coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that in the last seven days, more than 4,886 Americans have died, including 141 people in Pennsylvania.
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The Philadelphia event did not follow CDC guidelines — it was held inside, in a crowded room where people did not follow social distancing precautions, HuffPost reports. Giuliani, who also flouted medical advice and did not wear a mask, has spent a considerable amount of time in Pennsylvania, a battleground state. On Saturday, he spoke to about 200 people on a sidewalk in Scranton, where he made fun of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden for wearing a mask. Face coverings are "not science," Giuliani proclaimed. "It's political bullsh-t. It's worse than that. It's intended to scare people."
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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