Tipsheet

The Oral Arguments on Biden's Vaccine Mandate Were a Total Disaster

On Friday, the Supreme Court heard arguments about the constitutionality of President Joe Biden's Wuhan coronavirus vaccine mandates for private companies with more than 100 employees. In September 2021, Biden tasked OSHA with implementing and enforcing the mandates. In the time since, the administration has been sued by multiple parties. 

During questioning, liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor made a number of false statements about the vaccine's ability to prevent transmission of the virus. While it may protect against death or hospitalization, the vaccine does not prevent transmission. 

"They continue to work well for Delta, with regard to severe illness and death – they prevent it. But what they can't do anymore is prevent transmission," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in an interview with CNN over the summer. 

Sotomayor falsely claimed the Omicron variant of the virus is just as deadly as the previous Delta version. This is false

A South African doctor who was one of the first to suspect a different coronavirus strain among patients said on Sunday that symptoms of the Omicron variant were so far mild and could be treated at home.

Dr. Angelique Coetzee, a private practitioner and chair of South African Medical Association, told Reuters that on Nov. 18 she noticed seven patients at her clinic who had symptoms different from the dominant Delta variant, albeit "very mild".

Further, the Justice claimed 100,000 children are in "serious condition" and "on ventilators" for the disease. This is not true, and according to the data from the CDC, children are still at little risk for serious illness or death from the disease. 

Justice Stephen Breyer argued hospitals are at capacity because of the disease, specifically due to unvaccinated individuals getting ill. This is not true. 

Breyer also said there were 750 million new cases yesterday, that is not remotely true. 

A decison on whether to uphold Biden's mandate is expected soon.