“For the record, if I do get the coronavirus I’m attending every MAGA rally I can.”, reads a post retweeted by Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca (CO-D) with a “#solidarity Yaaaas!”

While CdeBaca’s retweet remains, the original post has now been removed from Twitter as of Tuesday. However, the fact remains that it would take a disgusting and vile human being to state that if they contracted a sickness or disease that she would purposefully infect supporters of someone with a differing viewpoint. To make matters worse, CdeBaca laughs and jokes about the idea as if it were funny.

It is clear to me that, while CdeBaca doesn’t have the coronavirus, she is a sick woman. She may appear to be physically healthy, but she is plagued by a moral depravity and hatred in her heart that eats at a person’s innermost being like cancer. While I don’t believe the hype of the media concerning the severity or seriousness of the virus, it speaks to a much deeper problem in our hearts as Americans if an elected official in any party would wish ill on supporters of a political opponent.

As a libertarian, there are many areas where I disagree with President Trump and many of his supporters. As a human being, I would never wish any harm on someone due to a political disagreement. I am not saying that politics can’t or shouldn’t be hotly debated at times; in fact, I am glad that it is, but this behavior is beyond acceptable and should be condemned on every level.

I would like to recommend to the councilwoman put into practice the words of Jesus to love her neighbor as herself. She should remember that, regardless of an individual’s political convictions, we are all human beings deserving of some basic level of respect. People who are elected to represent the American people should be held to a higher standard than this. But if we as a nation are electing people with this deficiency of character, perhaps we have a much bigger problem to worry about than any coronavirus scare the mainstream media can cook up. The fact of the matter is we are very ill as a people. Candi’s comments are only a symptom of a virus that can only be cured by a dose of compassion as prescribed by Dr. Love.

America has always been strong and will continue to thrive as long as we don’t allow ourselves to break our own backs by viewing our neighbors as the enemy for having a different point of view. If the American Republic is to survive, we must relearn to govern ourselves effectively. Limited government is only compatible with people who are capable of internal self-government, which requires individuals to have a strong moral compass. If we don’t learn this again, we can forget any hope of restoring our Constitutional Republic.

As much as I blame Councilwoman CdeBacca for her repugnant comment concerning Trump supporters, I am grateful for it in some regard as it gives the American people a chance to be quiet and reflect on the fact that perhaps we are allowing ourselves to dive into the depths of a dark place where we really don’t want to go.

As a lifelong student of American history, I am confident we can overcome anything as I have seen who we are when the chips are down. If we continue to drink the poison of hate toward our fellow citizens, the coronavirus will be the least of our problems. As Christ said in Matthew 12:25, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.”