Sheriff vows to still fight Washington COVID rules after being hospitalized with virus

A five-day hospital stay with COVID-19 won’t curtail a Washington sheriff’s battle against pandemic restrictions, he says.

Sheriff Bob Songer of Klickitat County, who once threatened to arrest anyone trying to enforce COVID-19 rules, is at home on oxygen recovering from the virus, The Goldendale Sentinel reported.

“Bottom line is: I beat it. And I did it without taking vaccinations, without getting my shot, without none of that nonsense,” Songer, 76, told Oregon Public Broadcasting. “And that’s my decision. I make that decision. Not the government.”

Songer said his existing health conditions from a lung cancer battle several years ago landed him in an Oregon hospital, where he tested positive for COVID-19, The Goldendale Sentinel reported. But he left after five days.

He told the publication that while “they’re good people” he doesn’t believe hospitals “have your best interests at heart” because they follow a scientific approach to COVID-19, which he thinks constrains personal freedoms.

“If you want to go get a shot, go get that shot,” Songer told Oregon Public Broadcasting. “By all means. If you want to wear several masks, or one mask, whatever, by all means. But don’t try forcing people into doing what (they) don’t want to do.”

An undated statement on the Klickitat County Sheriff’s Department website signed by Songer deplores Gov. Jay Inslee’s coronavirus restrictions and says he will not enforce them.

“No crisis should ever violate a citizen’s liberty or God-given rights under our US Constitution or Washington State Constitution,” Songer wrote.

In June, Songer said in a statement on the sheriff’s Facebook page that he would arrest anyone trying to enforce pandemic restrictions in the county, citing his oath to the “supreme judge of the universe.”

More than 99% of recent COVID-19 deaths in the United States have involved people who are not vaccinated against the virus, NPR reported in July.

More than 209 million cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed worldwide with more than 4 million deaths as of Aug. 19, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 37 million confirmed cases with more than 624,000 deaths.

This story was originally published August 19, 2021 at 9:58 AM with the headline "Sheriff vows to still fight Washington COVID rules after being hospitalized with virus."