President Joe Biden’s COVID vaccination mandate is receiving even more backlash, and threats of legal action from Republican attorneys general. Twenty-four GOP attorneys general warned the president against his “disastrous and unproductive” mandate and promised to seek “every legal option” to fight it.
“Your plan is disastrous and unproductive. From a policy perspective, this edict is unlikely to win hearts and minds-- it will simply drive more skepticism. At least some Americans will simply leave the job market instead of complying,” the attorneys general wrote to President Biden. “Your edict is also illegal.”
The state AGs added that the president and his administration have given “flimsy legal arguments” to justify the overreaching mandate.
“The vaccines have helped protect millions of Americans, and there are surely others who could benefit from receiving this treatment. But convincing those who are hesitant to do so would require you to allow room for discussion and disagreement. Instead, you have offered the American people flimsy legal arguments, contradictory statements, and threatening directives. It is almost as if your goal is to sow division and distrust, rather than promote unity and the public’s health.”
Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA) Chairman Alan Wilson, Attorney General for South Carolina, warned that Biden's executive overreach going "unchecked" would lead to "dire consequences" for the future.
“President Biden’s proposed vaccine mandate is nothing but an un-constitutional power grab. We are a nation of laws, not men, yet the Biden administration has shown that it has no limiting principles,” Wilson said in a statement. “We are not a country that rules by edict and if President Biden’s power grab goes unchecked, it will have dire consequences for our nation. Republican attorneys general throughout our country are joining together in this fight for the rights of States, small businesses and individual liberty. Instead of bringing people who disagree together, he has chosen to pit Americans against each other by diktat. We will not tolerate Biden’s tyrannical rule. The lines are clear, this is Joe Biden’s unlawful agenda versus the American people. We will win this fight and protect the foundational principles that make our country great.”
Republican governors have also threatened to see the Biden administration in court over the mandate.