(CNN) Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has made a political career on his unapologetic conservatism and willingness to, well, just say stuff that other politicians won't.

He was at it again on Monday night in an interview with Fox News' Tucker Carlson. On the heels of President Donald Trump beginning to suggest that the time for lessening social distancing and other restrictive measures to slow the spread of coronavirus may have arrived, Patrick took things a step further. Here's what he said (Bold is mine):

"I am living smart, listening to the President, the CDC guidelines like all people should, but I am not living in fear of Covid-19. What I'm living in fear of is what's happening to this country. And you know, Tucker, 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.

"And that doesn't make me noble or brave or anything like that, I just think there are lots of grandparents out there in this country, like me, I have six grandchildren, that what we all care about and what we love more than anything are those children. And, I want to, you know, live smart and see through this, but I don't want the whole country to be sacrificed. And that's what I see. I've talked to hundreds of people, Tucker, and just in the last week, and making calls all the time and everyone says pretty much the same thing, that we can't lose our whole country. We are having an economic collapse. I'm also a small businessman --- I understand it, and I talk with business people all the time, Tucker, and my heart is lifted tonight by what I heard the President say, because we can do more than one thing at a time. We can do two things. So, my message is that, let's get back to work, let's get back to living, let's be smart about it, and those of us who are 70 plus, we will take care of ourselves but don't sacrifice the country. Don't do that. Don't ruin this great American dream."

Now, let's not mince words here: What Patrick is saying is that people over 70 would rather die (or greatly increase the odds they might) in order for the economy to get up and running again. That America's economy is worth more than the lives that would be lost.

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