Nancy Pelosi will never live this one down.
Is this the worst political transgression ever — on a par with Trump ignoring a pandemic that has killed 184,000 Americans or coaxing a foreign power to interfere in the election? Of course not. Democratic spinners will lash the media for ripping this out of proportion, as with their tiresome complaints about coverage of Hillary Clinton’s emails. But politics is as much about perception as policy. And Pelosi handed Republicans a gift, since conservatives love to demonize her as a rich socialist who passes laws infringing the freedom of Americans that she ignores herself. Worse, the incident will further politicize mask wearing, one of the few current ways to slow America’s disastrous pandemic. Salon-gate is a classic campaign brouhaha, apparently confirming an existing negative stereotype about the politician caught in the trap. It’s a reminder that in campaign season — and for any politician not named Donald Trump — even the slightest slip can be catastrophic.
