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| Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times |
Making Americans chose between providing for their families or getting a COVID-19 shot
During his September 9 press conference, President Joe Biden laid out his plan to address the COVID-19 pandemic and the Delta variant surge. This was perhaps the most authoritarian speech I have heard. The President’s most telling statement was when he said, “This is not about freedom or personal choice. It’s about protecting yourself and those around you — the people you work with, the people you care about, the people you love.”
What is alarming about this statement is that it completely abandons the concept of freedom and liberty for the perception of temporary safety through expanded government power. Suppose President Biden’s executive action is allowed to stand. In that case, any President can use this reasoning to justify taking any unilateral action on anything they want without any authority granted by Congress. Who is to say that this justification cannot be used to support the regulatory confiscation of guns, a regulatory prohibition on smoking, a regulatory prohibition on the consumption of unhealthy foods, and even regulatory limits on free speech – after all, it’s not about freedom or personal choice but about protecting us from ourselves and each other.
I am pro-vaccine. I have received my vaccine, and I encourage everyone to get the vaccine if their health care provider says it is right for them. I also recognize that vaccine mandates have existed for decades and that the courts have granted broad police power to state governments when applied reasonably. Through a constitutionally prescribed process, the state government can implement mandates (with certain accommodations) to protect public health. Furthermore, private employers have the right to run their businesses how they see fit and can thus implement mandates. In contrast, the government can also pass legislation prohibiting mandates. --->READ MORE HERE
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| Illustration by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times |
Two weeks ago, President Joseph R. Biden announced his intention to order the Department of Labor to compel all employers of more than 100 persons to require all their employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or be fined $14,000 per day for each unvaccinated employee. The Department of Labor will collect the fines.
Mr. Biden‘s legal advisers probably informed him that the federal government is without authority to compel individuals directly to receive vaccinations. If it were, the compulsion would need to come from Congress — which writes the laws —, not from the president, who enforces them.
But the same advisers undoubtedly told the president that the feds are possessed of authority to tell employers whose businesses affect interstate commerce how to run their businesses. For a government that can’t pay its bills without borrowing $2 trillion a year, can’t comply with the regulations it imposes on the rest of us, and can’t follow the Constitution its officers have sworn to uphold, it is a sick joke that it can second-guess management of private businesses.
By using private businesses to enforce his dictates, is the president doing indirectly what the Constitution prohibits the federal government from doing directly?
Here is the backstory. --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to related stories and resources:
Biden administration ‘strongly opposes’ honorable discharge for service members who refuse COVID-19 vaccine
Washington school told students to wear masks while chewing food
USA TODAY: Coronavirus Updates
WSJ: Coronavirus Live Updates
YAHOO NEWS: Coronavirus Live Updates
NEW YORK POST: Coronavirus The Latest
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