THE GOP'S PRO-COVID-19 AGENDA.

PositionSMOKING GUN - Republican Party

Republican lawmakers in at least twenty-six states, driven by manufactured outrage over mask mandates, vaccination requirements, and shutdowns, have passed laws to weaken the authority, possibly permanently, of state and local officials to protect public health, according to a recent report from Kaiser Health News.

At least sixteen states have limited public health officials' power to order mask mandates, quarantines, or isolation, the report says. And at least seventeen states have banned COVID-19 vaccine mandates or passports, or "made it easier to get around vaccine requirements." (These tallies do not include pro-COVID-19 bans on public health measures imposed by executive order--like the surprise one signed by Idaho's Republican lieutenant governor while the governor, also a Republican, was out of state.)

Here are some examples:

ARKANSAS

SB 590 largely revokes the ability of state and local governments to impose mask mandates, which it calls "a burden on the public peace, health, and safety." Governor Asa Hutchinson later regretted having signed the bill, saying he did so knowing he "would be overridden by the legislature if I didn't."

KANSAS

SB 40 empowers local school boards, not public health officials, to decide what public health measures should be in place in schools. It also requires districts to employ the "least restrictive means possible" to maintain a safe educational environment.

MONTANA

HB 632, passed in April, called for a 20 percent cut in some state funding to local jurisdictions that pass public health rules stronger than the state's. By mid-September, public health officials there were begging citizens to wear masks to relieve the...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT