Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) said Sunday that Americans should treat each other with "civility and respect" as individuals make different decisions for themselves on whether or not they wear a face covering.
Asked by host Sandra Smith on "Fox News Sunday" if he thinks recent moves by blue states to ease masking requirements were confusing given contradictory views from the White House and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Polis pointed out that the federal government is just issuing recommendations and is not mandating masks.
"In Colorado, we haven't had a statewide mass requirement for close to a year," Polis said. "What the CDC puts out, Sandra, is guidance, they're recommendations on science. The CDC doesn't mandate anything. It's really been up to local governments and ... in some states governors to determine when or if people need to wear a mask."
This comes after a number of Democratic-led states such as California, Oregon, New Jersey and New York lift indoor masking requirements.
Polis said the CDC should offer guidance without political influence but that individuals should be allowed to make their own decisions on if they wear a mask.
"There's something more important than whether you wear a mask or not and that's civility and respect," he said. "And if you're somebody who doesn't like wearing masks respect those who do. If you're somebody who likes wearing masks, please respect those who don't."
President Joe Biden said last week during an interview with NBC News that Democratic governors' decisions to lift mask mandates were "premature."
And CDC director Rochelle Walensky said in a radio interview on WYPR's "Midday" that the agency still "recommends that people mask in public indoor settings in areas of high or substantial transmission."
But White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci told the Financial Times that the U.S. is "heading out of" the "full-blown pandemic phase of COVID-19."