By Jason Smith, member of Congress
After two years of evidence from COVID lockdown policies and restrictions, we’ve learned three things pretty clearly. First, we’ve learned that states and cities that locked down harmed their own citizens through reduced job opportunities and mental health challenges associated with isolation. Second, we have learned that the Biden administration is unwilling to stand up to wealthy liberal elites who prefer the government controlling hardworking Americans’ actions. And third, we have the data to prove that these mandates, lockdowns, restrictions and authoritarian actions had little, if any impact on combatting COVID-19.
The most recent example is the mask mandate for public transportation. Last week, despite public polling showing the growing unpopularity of these mandates, the Biden Administration decided to arbitrarily extend this mandate for another two weeks – all while producing little evidence of the mandate’s benefit to public health. However, this extension was quickly overruled by a judge in Florida who found the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had not met the necessary criteria to justify the mandate’s continuation.
The ruling was celebrated around the country. Almost immediately, most major airlines and public transit agencies dropped the mandate. Even the Biden administration’s own Transportation Security Administration immediately ruled it would no longer enforce the mandate. Then, to top it off, President Biden himself endorsed individual choice with respect to masks on airplanes, saying the decision should be “up to them.”
One would assume this was the end of the road for the unjustifiable masking mandates…but not with the bureaucrats Biden has put in charge. His own Department of Justice (DOJ) announced it would appeal the ruling and seek to restore the mask mandate. This is flatly absurd, and is just more evidence that the president isn’t really in control of his administration. He is simply being led by Washington bureaucrats whose only agenda is increasing their control over the lives and livelihoods of the American people.
The decision by DOJ to appeal also highlights how Biden picks and chooses when to use his permanent pandemic narrative as an excuse to subject Americans to his big government goals. Take for example his repeal of Title 42 Border Policy, which was put in place by President Trump to quickly remove illegal immigrants who had entered our country and could potentially spread COVID-19. When Biden made his decision to withdraw enforcement of Title 42, his administration claimed it was because COVID was under control – a decision that all but ensures a surge of illegal border crossings at our southern border. But then just two weeks later, he claimed the ongoing public health emergency was why he needed to extend the mask mandate. This is apparently what Democrats mean when they say their decisions are guided by “science.”
Despite the administration’s own incompetent handling of this situation, Americans have moved on. On planes, buses, and trains, video clips went viral showing travelers removing their masks and cheering as people celebrated the end of one of the last remaining federal measures requiring them to wear a mask. No one wants or needs the president’s permission to resume living their lives.
No matter who is running the government or how nonsensical its rulings are, I will continue to fight against these reckless policies that put Washington bureaucrats in charge and against Washington’s insanity every step of the way.