In her first episode back after a short break, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow told viewers that she was on hiatus due to her partner of 21 years, Susan Mikula, getting COVID.
Maddow remains negative for the virus but spoke about how she had been quarantining with Mikula since she tested positive two weeks ago. In the seven-minute-long segment, Maddow spoke about how sick her partner had been — so sick, in fact, that they thought she may die, the commentator said.
“My relationship with Susan, at the end of the day, is the only thing that I would kill or die for without hesitation,” Maddow said. “Susan has been sick with COVID these past couple of weeks. At one point, we really thought that there was a possibility that it might kill her, and that’s why I’ve been away.”
Although Maddow quarantined with her partner, they remained separate the entire two weeks in case she caught it as well. She says that Mikula got “sicker and sicker” but that she “tried to care for her while still staying physically apart from her.” Luckily, Mikula is recovering, and Maddow noted they were no longer as afraid as they had been.
Maddow reiterated over and over just how much she loved her partner (and the queer tears were flowing). It was clear that, although she was expressing her care for Mikula, Maddow was also trying to show her viewers that this virus can strike anyone, and their loved ones — and that it could be devastating.
“I would have done anything,” Maddow said. “I would have moved mountains for it to have been me who was sick these past couple of weeks instead of Susan. I still would give anything for that. This thing does not give you that choice.”
Regardless of your plans or how you’re moving through the weird world of the pandemic, Maddow left viewers with a very pointed warning: Coronavirus is real, it’s not fun, and it’s not worth risking your life for.
“This thing is scary as hell,” Maddow said. “Whatever you’ve been willing to do to risk getting it, don’t do it.”
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