A Michigan Republican who spreads conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and vaccines is in the intensive care unit after contracting the virus.
William Hartmann, former vice-chairman of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers has been on a ventilator since early November, according to Detroit Metro News.
Last February, early in the pandemic, Hartmann wrote on Facebook that his doctor told him Covid was “a virus like any other virus, nothing to be concerned about.” He questioned what “all the hullabaloo in the media about” then suggested that was all about the money.
Since then he continued to spread widely debunked conspiracy theories about the pandemic. In October he shared an OAN video that claims hospitals are inflating the Covid-19 death-toll by falsely reporting deaths from the virus.
“Eye Opener. Do the math. How much were Hospitals overpaid by falsely reporting?” Hartmann wrote, according to CNN.
He has also compared efforts to mitigate the spread of the virus to Nazi Germany and is criticial of the government incentivizing vaccinations. In a July Facebook post he wrote: “If the ouchie is so great, why do they have to offer bribes?”
It is not clear if Hartmann is vaccinated since he refuses to divulge his vaccination status because he believes it is a violation of his First and Fifth Amendment rights.
Hartmann, a Trump supporter, was one of two republican members on the four-person Wayne County bipartisan canvassing board to temporarily block certification of the county’s votes in the 2020 presidential election based on dubious claims of fraud in Detroit.
Trump celebrated the move with a tweet praising the Republican canvassers’ “courage” for halting the certification.
“Wow! Michigan just refused to certify the election results! Having courage is a beautiful thing. The USA stands proud!” Trump tweeted at the time.
However, Hartmann and his Republican colleague voted along with the board’s two Democrats to certify the votes after a few hours.
