(CNN) In case you've been on another planet this week -- in which case, can I come along!?!? -- know that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves lifted the mask mandates in their states.
They did so against public health guidance and, especially in Abbott's case, with more than a little political calculation.
Asked about the decision on Wednesday, President Joe Biden said this: "The last thing -- the last thing we need is Neanderthal thinking that in the meantime, everything's fine, take off your mask, forget it. It still matters."
OK, case closed. Right? Nope!
Here comes Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn:
"Neanderthals are hunter-gatherers, they're protectors of their family, they are resilient, they're resourceful, they tend to their own. So, I think Joe Biden needs to rethink what he is saying."
So, yeah, I guess we're doing this then? What's next: a debate over whether we should take Biden literally or seriously?
This is, of course, totally ridiculous. What Biden meant when he said "Neanderthal thinking" was that ALL of the public health experts have said that opening business to 100% capacity and dropping mask mandates is straight up dumb and could well cause another surge in the virus even as we are just two months away from every American getting a vaccine who wants one.
Which is, admittedly, more words than "Neanderthal thinking." But conveys the same meaning.
The Point: Blackburn, of course, knows all of this. She is being willfully obtuse to score political points, which is an ugly reality when you consider that more than 519,000 Americans have died from Covid-19.