Cedric Richmond, who is a senior advisor to President Joe Biden and director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, warned governors who are challenging Biden's new COVID-19 vaccine mandates that will be "run over" by the administration.
Biden announced on Thursday a new rule will be created and enforced by the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that will require businesses that employ more than 100 people to have a vaccine mandate. If employees do not get the vaccine, they have to conduct weekly testing. Any business caught violating the rule will face heavy fines.
Biden also aimed his frustration towards some Republican governors who have not implemented or removed strict COVID-19 lockdowns and mandates.
BIDEN: "If these governors won’t help beat the pandemic, I’ll use my power as president to get them out of the way." pic.twitter.com/KBG2fwgQ9v
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 9, 2021
Richmond told CNN's Don Lemon Biden's threat is not about politics, but about saving people's lives.
"The one thing I admire about this President is the fact we’re always going to put people above politics, and we’re going to fight for those who really need our help, and so it’s unfortunate that we have so many governors that are using vaccinations and mask requirements as a political gain, but our purpose is to save lives, and we will do anything and everything under our control to make sure that we protect our citizens, especially those children who cannot get a vaccination yet, and so we have to do everything we can to make sure adults do it," Richmond, a former congressman from Louisiana, said.
"And those governors who stand in the way, I think it was very clear from the President’s tone today is that he will run over them, and it is important. It’s not for political purposes. It’s to save the lives of the American people, and so we won’t let one or two individuals stand in the way. We will always err on the side of protecting the American people," he added.