Mike Rowe and mom Peggy on why every worker is an essential worker
TV host, author Mike Rowe and his mother Peggy join ‘Fox and Friends.’
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"Returning the Favor" host Mike Rowe largely has questioned the widespread term "essential worker" as it relates to the coronavirus, but when it comes to his mother, he finds it entirely appropriate.
"She’s the ultimate essential worker," Rowe said during a Mother's Day appearance on "Fox & Friends Sunday."
Rowe has criticized the use of the term "essential worker" during multiple Fox News interviews, arguing that many industries deemed unessential during the coronavirus pandemic have been the backbone of the U.S. economy.
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"In the age of COVID, when you’re talking about the economy, I think that it's kind of a crazy distinction to make," Rowe told host Pete Hegseth.
"You just told 35 million people who are unemployed, we just collectively told them in no uncertain terms that they are non-essential. That's not good," he argued. "It doesn't make sense and if anybody doubts it, I think all we have to do is look at the economic impact of arbitraging that many people out of the workforce to see that, in fact, they are essential."
Peggy Rowe joined her son during his appearance Sunday to highlight her new book "About Your Father and Other Celebrities I Have Known," and offered advice to moms across the country celebrating the day during unfamiliar times.
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"This is really a strange time, and I would suggest that every woman out there sit down and write something about her mother," Mrs. Rowe said. "We all had mothers, and that's how I began my writing career. I sat down and started writing about my mother, and what better time than Mother's Day to do that. Even if it's not published, it will give you great satisfaction."
"She's annoyingly modest," Rowe said of his mom. "I don't know why she isn't telling you that two years ago, her first book about went straight to the New York Times bestsellers list, and now, her second one has been there for nearly a month."
He continued, "The woman is 82 years old. She completely reinvented her life at 80 and when she tells the country that they ought to sit down and write, the country ought to listen, because it’s transformative."
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"There's never been a better time in the history of our country to sit down, take stock and put your thoughts on paper," Rowe concluded.
"My mom just happens to do it better than most."