During an interview with CNN this week about the Biden administration's latest door-to-door vaccination campaign, Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra proved once again why he should have never been confirmed for his current position.
"The federal government has spent trillions of dollars to try and keep Americans alive during this pandemic. So it is absolutely the government's business, it is taxpayers' business, if we have to continue to spend money to try and keep people from contracting COVID," Becerra said. "It is our business."
"Knocking on the door has never been against the law," he added.
After justified outrage about the statement, which derailed any effort to get people skeptical of government intentions and the Wuhan coronavirus vaccine to take the shot, Becerra attempted to walk it back. During the effort, he accused those who heard him clearly of taking him "out of context."
"Some comments I made today are being taken wildly out of context. To be clear: government has no database tracking who is vaccinated. We're encouraging people to step up to protect themselves, others by getting vaccinated. It's the best way to save lives and end this pandemic," Becerra tweeted in an effort to clean up the mess he made.
There was nothing taken out of context. This is who Becerra is. He is a tyrant. His record of suing nuns in California and his overall philosophy about the role of government have been clear for years. Now that he's in a position of authority, sitting as a member of President Joe Biden's Cabinet and at the helm of a powerful government agency, his heavy-handed approach has only been emboldened. Worse, Becerra believes that because he is in charge of "health," despite having zero experience in the field, he has free rein to do whatever he wants.
Becerra's latest comments also remind us of a strategic mistake made earlier this year by Senate Republicans and moderate Democrats.
In February and March, Becerra's nomination for the position was being considered at the same time as Neera Tanden for director of the Office of Budget and Management. Instead of blocking Becerra, who has a long track record of using the court system to trample all over the individual liberties of Americans, they canned Tanden's nomination over a series of mean tweets.
"I have carefully reviewed Neera Tanden's public statements and tweets that were personally directed toward my colleagues on both sides of the aisle from Senator Sanders to Senator McConnell and others. I believe her overtly partisan statements will have a toxic and detrimental impact on the important working relationship between members of Congress and the next director of the Office of Management and Budget," West Virginia's Democratic Senator Joe Manchin said at the time. "For this reason, I cannot support her nomination. As I have said before, we must take meaningful steps to end the political division and dysfunction that pervades our politics. At a time of grave crisis, it is more important than ever that we chart a new bipartisan course that helps address the many serious challenges facing our nation."
To say the least, the sacrifice of Tanden instead of Becerra was a bad move, and his latest comments about what the government has a right to know or do are just the beginning.
