![GOP Lawmaker Changes His Tune On Coronavirus After Nearly Dying Of COVID-19](https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/61078c3d410000559481cfa9.jpeg?cache=7sfr4aqzoe&ops=1778_1000)
GOP Lawmaker Changes His Tune On Coronavirus After Nearly Dying Of COVID-19
HuffPost
David Byrd, who attended maskless gatherings, was on a ventilator and needed a liver transplant as a result of the infection.
A GOP lawmaker in Tennessee who once backed a bill claiming the media sensationalized the coronavirus “in the service of political agendas” has a new message after nearly dying of the infection. “It is a disease that wants to kill us,” state Rep. David Byrd wrote over the weekend in a statement cited by NewsChannel 5 in Nashville. “Please take it seriously.” The Tennesseean reported that Byrd attended a state House Republican retreat in November, which included a dinner with dozens present, and he was seen on the House floor without a mask on Nov. 24.More Related News