Biden's COVID vaccine mandate angers Republicans, libertarians
Republicans and libertarians are vowing to fight US President Joe Biden’s new vaccine mandate covering big companies, healthcare workers and federal employees, announced as the Delta strain of the coronavirus rapidly spreads through the country.
The mandate, which the White House says would cover 100 million US workers and applies to about two-thirds of all US employees, is being written in part by the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Within hours of the new measures being announced on Thursday, some lawmakers, state governors and political party officials were threatening lawsuits or pledging to defy it.
“When this decree goes into effect, the (Republican National Committee) will sue the administration to protect Americans and their liberties,” RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel said in a statement.
A majority of those opposed questioned the authority the administration has to mandate vaccines.
Asked Friday about possible legal challenges, Biden said “Have at it. I’m so disappointed that because some of the Republican governors have been so cavalier with the health of these kids, so cavalier with the health of their communities.” The disease has killed more than 655,000 people in the United States, and deaths and hospitalizations have been rising sharply as the easily transmissible Delta variant of the virus spreads. The vast majority of those are unvaccinated.
The situation reignites a long-standing US battle over individual rights, states’ constitutional remit to police citizens and regulate public welfare, and the powers of the executive branch.
Similar fights have raged over gun laws and government healthcare. US vaccine mandates in the past have mostly been administered by state and local governments in relation to public venues and schools.
Roughly 16% of the adult American population - nearly 34 million people - are currently unvaccinated but open to getting one, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll.
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