Minnesota GOP chair: Dems using COVID-19 for 'communist control'

Things are tough under the coronavirus pandemic: Schools have closed their doors, and bars, restaurants and most public places are shuttered. People must stay in their homes unless it's absolutely necessary to go out.

But the last straw? For Minnesota Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan, it was the Minneapolis Park Board closing city beaches for the summer to limit the spread of COVID-19.

"Was it necessary for Minneapolis to close the beaches for the summer in early Apr? Much can unfold, change & transpire between now/then," she tweeted Friday. "The Democrats have turned Coronavirus into an excuse for extreme communist control. Wake up people!"

It was just a preview of the party's broader messaging against Democrats on COVID-19 in what is still a pivotal election year. In an e-mail blast to supporters Friday, Carnahan said Democrats are "taking this global pandemic and politicizing it to bring socialism, control and extreme measures to the forefront of our country."

DFL Party Chair Ken Martin fired back, using the visual imagery of the Pentagon preparing to distribute "100,000 body bags for the people this virus kills." "It is astonishing that the head of the Minnesota Republican Party felt it was appropriate to launch a hackneyed political attack because Minneapolis city officials are trying to keep Minnesotans safe," he said.