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July 5th, 2021 
Awake Goy 
Governor Spencer Cox (R-UT) said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that Republicans have been making bad decisions on the coronavirus pandemic, such as resisting getting vaccinated because “politics is becoming religion in our country.”
Partial transcript as follows:
ED O’KEEFE: And I know in several states across the country, they have set up essentially lotteries for people who end up getting a vaccine, and several people have won hefty sums of money for-for showing up after these lotteries began. But your state legislature, as I understand it, has blocked you from offering cash incentives to people for getting vaccinated. Are you being hamstrung by that? Would you like that option?
COX: Well, we’re certainly having those conversations with- with the legislature. They’re- they’re looking closely at what’s working in other states. I would like all options on the table, but I- I will say this, I think, you know, not-not dying is- is a great incentive. My colleague, Jim Justice, Governor Justice this morning said everybody’s playing a lottery of sorts. It’s if you’re not vaccinated, you’re playing a different kind of lottery. I think he called it the death lottery, something like that. But- but certainly we’re-we’re hopeful that that reason will rule and people will see how effective these vaccines are. Again, 95% of- of deaths since May have been amongst unvaccinated people in the state. So those are deaths that don’t have to happen, hospitalizations that don’t have to happen. It’s very simple and very easy to get the vaccine now.
O’KEEFE: We brought this up earlier with Jeff Zients, the White House COVID-19 coordinator. But there’s a new Washington Post poll out this morning that reinforces the unfortunate partisan divide on vaccinations. Overwhelming majorities of Democrats say they’ve been vaccinated, just 45% of Republicans. And 38% of Republicans say they’ll definitely not get the vaccine. What do you make of that?
COX: Well, it’s troubling, and I spoke about this often over the past, I mean, not even the past four years, but the past eight years, about how unfortunate it is that that politics is becoming religion in our country, that- that politics is becoming sport and entertainment in our country, that everything is- is political. It’s a huge mistake. And it’s caused us to make bad decisions during this pandemic and in other phases of our life as well. So- so it’s deeply troubling. We’re doing a little better amongst Republicans here in the state of Utah when it comes to vaccines versus those numbers that you just shared. And we’ll continue to work with- with everyone in our state to get them vaccinated.
Follow Pam Key on Twitter @pamkeyNEN
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