Letters

The Express News Group rightly denounces Congressman Lee Zeldin for not wearing a mask at President Trump’s Tulsa rally [“Just A Face In The Crowd,” Editorial, June 25], writing: “It was a stellar opportunity to show courage and leadership in the midst of a public health crisis. Instead, Lee Zeldin was just another face in the crowd.”

A week before President Trump’s sparsely attended Tulsa rally, a Fox News poll found that, “by a 36-point margin, voters say presidential candidates holding large political events and rallies is a bad idea.”

In their vernacular, Fox News might say, “Some are saying that the Tulsa rally has the potential to be a super spreader.”

In the medical opinion of Dr. Megan Ranney, emergency room physician and associate professor of emergency medicine at Brown University, “If there were even a couple of cases in the arena last night, we’re most likely going to see a spread among folks that attended. And then they’re going to go back to their states and it’s going to spread further.”

Let’s imagine an alternate universe where Congressman Zeldin possesses the courage and leadership that the editorial finds he so sadly lacks. In that imaginary setting, Lee Zeldin is in Tulsa wearing a mask, and is belittled by President Trump for being weak.

Zeldin, with his spine stiffening, responds: “Mr. President, I represent people who took the coronavirus threat seriously. They adhered to public health guidelines advocating social distancing, staying at home, frequent hand washing and sanitizing — and, on top of that, they wore masks. The people in my district did the right thing.”

Ya coulda been a hero, Lee Zeldin, but you were just “another face in the crowd.”

Mike Anthony

Westhampton

Mr. Anthony is the former chairman of the Southampton Town Democratic Committee — Ed.