Several Republican lawmakers voiced their displeasure with reports suggesting that some businesses are reimposing mask mandates.
Sen. J.D Vance (R-Ohio) announced plans on Sept. 5 to introduce the Freedom to Breathe Act, preventing the federal government from issuing nationwide mask mandates in the United States.
“We tried mask mandates once in this country. They failed to contain the spread of respiratory viruses, violated basic bodily freedom, and pinned our fellow citizens against one another,” Vance said in a statement this week. “Freedom to Breathe Act will guarantee that no federal bureaucracy, commercial airline, or public school can impose the misguided policies of the past. Democrats say they won’t bring back mask mandates, and we’ll hold them to their word.”
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), a trained physician opposed to COVID-19 mandates of any kind, told Fox News on Tuesday that masking is more about control than anything else. He said Democrats have always had utter disdain for the working class.
“If you don’t have a Ph.D., they think you’re not smart enough to make your own health care decisions,” he added.
Texas passed a bill that went into law in September that blocks COVID-19 restrictions mandating people wear masks in public spaces. A representative for Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a statement praising the bill.
Andrew Mahaleris, the representative, told Newsweek that thanks to Governor Abbott and the hard work of the Texas Legislature, Texas has closed the door on COVID restrictions.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene (R-Ga.) said in a recent town hall event that she wouldn’t vote for a federal budget that included funding for COVID-19 mask mandates or other related rules.
Kari Lake, a rising GOP notable who ran for governor in Arizona, wrote to her thousands of followers on X that she will not comply with any new mandates or lockdown, suggesting that others do the same.
“We won’t give up our freedoms again,” wrote Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) on Monday. “No more tyrannical vaccine or mask mandates.”
Several days ago, President Donald Trump released a video on social media proclaiming that Americans shouldn’t follow mask mandates or lockdowns. He described individuals pushing for new mandates as “COVID tyrants.”
“To every COVID tyrant who wants to take away our freedom, hear these words: We will not comply; we will not shut down our schools; we will not accept your lockdowns; we will not abide by your mask mandates, and we will not tolerate your vaccine mandates.”
The former president brought into account the 2020 election. “They rigged the 2020 election, and now they’re trying to do the same thing all over again by rigging the most important election in the history of our country, the 2024 election, even if it means trying to bring back COVID. But they will fail because we will not let it happen,” he added.
A former Trump official, Dr. Deborah Birx, who initially oversaw the COVID-19 pandemic response for the federal government in 2020, proposed in an interview that mask mandates should not be reinstated.
“We don’t need a mandate; we need to empower people with the information they need for themselves and their families because every family is different. Outside is safe, and playgrounds are safe.” Dr. Birx said in a Sept. 2 statement.
The declarations against mandates come as multiple hospitals, at least one elementary school, a college, offices, and several other isolated locations have reinstated masks starting in August.
The White House reported that President Biden will wear a mask in public after First Lady Jill Biden tested positive for COVID-19.
Morris Brown College, described as a historically black liberal arts college, stated in mid-August that it would reimpose mask mandates amid what it said was a rise in COVID-19 cases on campus.
In August, numerous hospitals in Upstate New York reported masks will be mandatory for staff, patients, and visitors. They include United Health Services in Binghamton, Auburn Community Hospital in Auburn, University Hospital in Syracuse, and Samaritan Health facilities in Watertown.
A Kaiser Permanente hospital in Northern California and a UMass hospital in Massachusetts similarly issued mask mandates that only apply to staff, not patients or visitors.