With unvaccinated Americans now three times more likely to be Republican than Democrat, Biden has found few influential GOP allies to help him push his case for vaccinations in areas of the world. the dark red area where Americans are still most resistant.
Summarizing what has become the focus of discussion among the GOP candidates as they head into the 2022 midterm primaries, Texas Senator Ted Cruz told reporters Wednesday that his party should “use every tool we have to protect people’s rights, and vaccination missions are illegal, they’re being abused and they’re hurting this country.”
But Senate majority Whip Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, warned that forcing a shutdown on a life-saving health measure would prove a disaster for the Republican Party: “I’m sure Definitely hope they don’t turn off the lights of this (in) government,” he said.
Not all Senate Republicans follow the machinations of conservative lawmakers — Sens in particular. Roger Marshall of Kansas and Mike Lee of Utah – who want to force protest against the vaccine mandate. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters Wednesday he thinks “we’ll be fine” as he works to prevent the shutdown. But this latest battle has demonstrated the extent to which America’s ability to emerge from the pandemic anytime soon will continue to be hampered by partisan support for public health measures.
The twists and turns on Capitol Hill are coming at a time when many Americans are worried about whether they will be protected against the Omicron variant and as well as Biden is expected to give a speech on Thursday. laid out his plan for the next phase of the pandemic at the National Institutes of Health.
The president has pushed for vaccine requirements for large employers (whom workers can opt out of if they comply with routine testing) and certain health care workers. as countless public health experts argue that the only way to end the pandemic is to increase vaccination rates. Biden got little help from Republicans when he begged Americans to get vaccinated. The mandate was scheduled to take effect in January when the President was faced with the reality that
About 45 million American adults are still unvaccinated – and incapable of being convinced by his arguments.
The duties almost immediately hit the courts after they were challenged by Republican attorney generals around the country, who appear to have the upper hand at the moment. Since Monday, the Biden administration has had to contend with
three major court failures temporarily blocked their vaccine claims in some states and, in one example, across the country.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki reflected the administration’s frustration with Republicans’ lack of steadiness on vaccine mandates on Wednesday as she addressed Republicans’ efforts. in the Senate aligned with Trump to shut down the government over vaccine requirements.
“Supporters of this former President are advocating a shutdown of the federal government so that the 20% of the public who refuse to be vaccinated or tested, can freely infect their colleagues, our children – The hospitals are filling up,” Psaki said. “That’s what they’re campaigning for.”
Increasing partisan sentiment around public health measures
Republicans’ blockade of Biden’s tools to try to contain the pandemic has created an impasse that may only worsen as political polarization grows towards the elections. .
In addition to the court battles, more than a dozen GOP-controlled legislatures around the country have been seeking to block vaccine mandates as they seek to incite the Republican base against midterm term. With much fanfare last month, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called for
a special session to bypass “protective measures” for workers who refuse to be vaccinated. A law that would allow Florida to penalize companies that require Covid-19 vaccinations as a condition of employment. In their continued quest to make life comfortable for the unvaccinated, several Republican-controlled legislatures have been seeking to ensure that terminated workers If you are not vaccinated, you may receive unemployment benefits.
At a press conference earlier this week, DeSantis
waving hand of Omicron as a self-declared individual freedom fighter: “In Florida, we will not allow any media-driven hysteria to do anything that infrings on individual liberties. people’s multiplier when it comes to any kind of COVID variant,” he said.
While the White House had hoped earlier this year that “trusted messengers” would help them in their quest to get the nation fully vaccinated – especially in the red areas of the country where the former President Donald Trump won – now it seems like an illusion. , as political partisanship becomes one of the strongest predictors of whether someone is vaccinated, according to
survey by Kaiser Family Foundation.
According to the organization, Republicans accounted for 60% of unvaccinated adults as of October, and the views of unvaccinated Republicans suggest that they are unlikely to be swayed by calls to Biden’s recent work on helping to eliminate the pandemic – and limit the threat of Omicron – by their firing.
Eighty-eight percent of Republicans are unvaccinated
surveyed by Kaiser Family Foundation states that the severity of the coronavirus is generally overstated, and that 96% say vaccination against Covid-19 is a “personal choice” and not “everyone’s responsibility to protect their health.” the well-being of others.” A great 84% said they were “not too worried” or “not worried at all” about getting sick from Covid-19.
Of course, the apathetic mindset of some Republicans was brought to the forefront by former President Donald Trump when he downplayed the importance of masks and testing during his time in the White House and then denied it. inexplicably pressured Americans. received the Covid-19 vaccine his administration helped produce through Operation Warp Speed.
Trump’s callous disregard for the health of those around him – and no interest in being upfront about his health with the American people – was underscored on Wednesday by a new report he Yes
tested positive for Covid-19 on September 26, 2020, three days before the presidential debate with then-candidate Joe Biden. However, the former President went on to host countless indoor and outdoor events that were revealed – including a Rose Garden ceremony for then Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, where few At least 12 attendees later tested positive for Covid-19 – without making a diagnosis for the public.
New details about Trump having tested positive earlier revealed previously
emerged in a memoir by his former chief of staff Mark Meadows, a copy was obtained by The Guardian ahead of the book’s publication next week. Meadows writes that Trump took the antigen test after receiving his first positive result and that second test came back negative, which prompted him to resume his normal schedule. He announced on October 2, 2020, that he and first lady Melania Trump had tested positive and that he was hospitalized later that day – a timeline that makes no sense. It doesn’t matter to doctors because it usually takes several days for severe Covid-19 symptoms to occur. evolution.
Trump asserted in a statement that “the story about me having COVID before or during the first debate is Fake News. In fact, a test showed I did not have COVID before the debate.”
Alyssa Farah Griffin, who served as strategic communications director under Trump and aide to the president, said Trump’s behavior showed
“blatant disregard for public health” and note the risks it posed to her employees and others in the West Wing.
“At this point in the White House, I have staff members who are pregnant. I have one person who is a multiple cancer survivor. We have a lot of people in the West Wing over 65. We could have killed someone. one of her colleagues, and instead, they decided not to tell anyone, putting every one of us at risk,” she told CNN’s Jake Tapper Wednesday on “The Lead.”
Unfortunately, the ethos that Trump displayed in those days – treating Covid as a minor inconvenience rather than a deadly threat to public health – continue to be widespread within his party. As long as that indifference continues, Americans’ lives will be at risk and the country will be caught in a pandemic that looks like it will never end.
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