Let's go to war over coronavirus.
Washington Examiner
OPINION: WASHINGTON SECRETS
Americans: China should pay for spreading virus, 3-in-10 say it’s ‘war’
By Paul Bedard
March 17, 2020 - 10:53 AM
Americans: China should pay for spreading virus, 3-in-10 say it’s ‘war’
Many people want China to help pay for its “silence and secrecy” that allowed the coronavirus to spread globally, according to a new survey focused on the crisis gripping the United States.
In the latest Rasmussen Reports survey shared with Secrets, 42% of likely U.S. voters said that the communist country should help pay some of the financial costs that have resulted from the so-called Wuhan coronavirus, named for the city it began in.
Some 36% disagreed, and 22% are undecided, said Rasmussen.
Support is higher among Republicans. Of them, 54% want China to “pay at least some of the world’s coronavirus bills,” said Rasmussen. Just 37% of both Democrats and voters not affiliated with either major political party agreed.
Anger at China in the U.S. continues to build, and Rasmussen asked about taking further steps to punish China, including war, if the country retaliates against Washington.
Rasmussen noted that Chinese efforts to blame the U.S. for the virus outbreak have included a call that the government restrict U.S. access to key drugs it makes for American markets.
Said the pollster: “Twenty-eight percent (28%) of voters here say that if China follows through with that threat, it should be considered an act of war. Forty-eight percent (48%) disagree, but 25% are not sure.”