President Biden, Governor Cooper, and Democrats are working together to crush the COVID-19 pandemic. Multiple polls, including one by Fox News, show that President Biden’s new plan as a path out of the pandemic is wildly popular with the American people. Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers in North Carolina continue to side with COVID-19 and make clear they are the pro-sickness, anti-vaccine party.

An op-ed published in INDY Week written by a small business owner based in Raleigh highlights how Republicans’ opposition to President Biden’s popular plan is hurting North Carolina’s rebounding economy. All Republican U.S. Senate candidates in North Carolina are against the President’s plan to end the pandemic and help small businesses back on track.

INDY Week: Tony Cope: Op-Ed: President Biden’s Plan to Crush the Virus Will Get North Carolina’s Economy Back on Track

• Small businesses are the pillars of our communities. Whether it’s stopping by the restaurant around the corner to pick up pizza on a Friday night, getting a haircut at the local barbershop, or seeing the joy across a child’s face after a new toy is purchased at a toy shop, small businesses throughout the Triangle and our state keep our economy afloat.
• When the COVID-19 pandemic caused an economic downturn in North Carolina and across the country, these same small businesses took a hard hit. As the small business owner of Myriad, a video production company of fifteen employees based in Raleigh, I know firsthand what it was like to navigate the economic fallout brought on by the virus. As cases soared, clients became increasingly hesitant to make any investments. The lack of guidance the federal government provided made it difficult for small businesses to survive.
• That all changed when President Joe Biden took office. From the first day of his administration, President Biden, Governor Cooper and Democrats worked together to slow the spread of the virus and institute concrete steps to rebound the economy. With a recent surge in cases due to the Delta variant, the President’s leadership met the moment once again by outlining a robust plan to build on progress, stop the spread of Delta, and increase vaccinations.
• Multiple polls in the past week, including one from Fox News, have shown that the vast majority of the American people support the president’s plan to defeat the pandemic. Meanwhile, North Carolina Republicans have perilously staked their political futures on opposition to President Biden’s popular plan to defeat the virus, embracing anti-vaxxers, promoting misinformation and ignoring science.
• Every single Republican candidate for U.S. Senate has proven that they are not fit to serve North Carolina through the pandemic. They have prioritized their own political interests over ensuring our economy continues rebounding and avoiding another economically-devastating lockdown.
• Instead of supporting common-sense measures to end the pandemic and ensure small businesses like mine can stay open, they’ve resorted to reckless, political posturing. Knowing the financial strain and fallout businesses experienced over the last year, Ted Budd, Pat McCrory, and Mark Walker’s disregard for small businesses is even more insulting. North Carolina cannot afford this type of negligence in Washington.
• Americans, including North Carolinians, overwhelmingly support President Biden’s plan to crush the virus and get our economy back on track. It’s simple: Republicans are on the wrong side of the American people. They’re hurting North Carolina’s small businesses along the way.

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