Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick On Reopening Amid COVID-19 Pandemic: ‘There Are More Important Things Than Living’

Texas’ Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said in an interview that he’s glad Texas has been taking steps to reopen the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic a month after saying he’d exchange his life to keep the economy running. 

“I’m sorry to say I was right on this. And I’m thankful that we are now, finally, beginning to open up Texas and other states because it’s been long overdue,” Patrick told Fox News’ Tucker Carlson. 

Patrick said that although “every life is valuable,” he compared the state’s 495 deaths as of Monday night to the state’s population of 29 million. 

“But 500 people out of 29 million and we’re locked down, and we’re crushing the average worker. We’re crushing small business. We’re crushing the markets. We’re crushing this country,” Patrick said. 

“And what I said when I was with you that night, there are more important things than living. And that’s saving this country for my children, and my grandchildren and saving this country for all of us. And I don’t want to die, nobody wants to die, but man, we got to take some risks and get back in the game, and get this country back up and running,” he added, referring to an interview last month where he said he’d be willing to risk his life “in exchange for keeping the America that all America loves for your children and grandchildren.”

Gilberto Hinojosa, Texas’ Democratic Party Chair, said on Tuesday that Texas Republicans, such as Patrick, “would put Texans at-risk to enrich themselves and their stock portfolios.”

“The lives of our families, our friends, and our communities have no dollar amount,” Hinojosa said. “Texas Republicans can no longer claim to be the pro-life party anymore.”

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