Fox News’ Brit Hume defended comments from Texas lieutenant governor Dan Patrick Tuesday night, saying it is “entirely reasonable” that elderly Americans could be fine with dying amid the coronavirus outbreak to save the U.S. economy.

“The utter collapse of the country’s economy — which many think will happen if this goes on much longer — is an intolerable result,” the 76-year-old told primetime host Tucker Carlson. “[Patrick] is saying, for his own part, that he would be willing to take a risk of getting the disease if that’s what it took to allow the economy to move forward. He said that because he is late in life, that he would be perhaps more willing than he might have been at a younger age, which seems to me to be an entirely reasonable viewpoint.”

Patrick sent shockwaves through viewers Monday night when the 63-year-old said on Carlson’s program, “No one reached out to me and said, ‘As a senior citizen, are you willing to take a chance on your survival in exchange for keeping the America that all America loves for your children and grandchildren?’ And if that’s the exchange, I’m all in.”

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Patrick explained he wants the country to “get back to work” and spoke for older Americans: “We’ll take care of ourselves.”

On Tuesday, Carlson asked Hume what about that idea “enrages” people. Hume said he couldn’t read minds, but had a theory the reaction had something to do with President Donald Trump and partisanship.

“We are living in a country in which people’s reactions to nearly everything have something to do, when you drill down, with how they feel about Donald Trump and to the extent that what the lieutenant governor said on your air last night is similar to the overall message to what Donald Trump has been saying, I think some of the reaction to it may flow from that,” he suggested.

Earlier Monday, Trump expressed his desire to have Americans back to work by Easter, which falls on April 12.

Last night Dan Patrick said grandparents would be willing to die to save the economy. Tonight Brit Hume said its "an entirely reasonable viewpoint" pic.twitter.com/pArEpeXpsu

— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) March 25, 2020

Read original story Fox News’ Brit Hume: It’s ‘Entirely Reasonable’ the Elderly Would Want to Die to Save Economy At TheWrap