President Biden admitted there is no one-size-fits-all solution to counter the pandemic, agreeing with two Republican governors that states should lead the efforts in tackling the virus.
Since the beginning of his presidential term, Biden has been promoting federal vaccine mandates and mask mandates, claiming this approach is necessary to curb the pandemic.
Biden admitted states’ authority in tackling coronavirus
On Monday, Biden was virtually talking to almost 25 governors.
The chair of the National Governors Association, Asa Hutchinson, governor of Arkansas, cautioned Biden against trespassing on states’ authorities in implementing his COVID-related policies.
Hutchinson said to Biden at a time when the president is trying to alleviate the pandemic through federal solutions, it is necessary for him to make sure his solutions do not stand in the way of states’ solutions.
Likewise, he reminded Biden while providing 500 million rapid test kits is a great measure, it reduces the scope of governors to help their respective states.
Responding to Hutchinson’s comments, Biden said there is “no federal solution,” and the virus has to be solved at the state level.
BIDEN, TODAY: “There is no federal solution” to COVID.
BIDEN, 2020: “I’m going to shut down the virus.” pic.twitter.com/3d1RaHRcyX
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) December 27, 2021
Biden also mentioned New Hampshire’s Governor Chris Sununu and made similar comments.
Biden leveraging federal measures to stop COVID
Despite his claims, Biden has relied on federal measures in his response to the pandemic. By extending mask mandates on airplanes, airports, and public transportation facilities, the president tried to curb the virus.
Similarly, the Education Department is investigating schools’ mask mandate bans in different states, which is against Biden’s claims of not regulating the pandemic from the federal level.
Not only this, but the Biden administration is defending the COVID vaccine mandate for private businesses with over 100 employees in the US Supreme Court.
During his call to governors, Biden claimed while the omicron variant is a source of concern for everyone, however, it should not be a cause for panic.
Biden also noted that unlike March 2020, this time, the government has all the tactics up its sleeves to tackle the pandemic, while keeping schools and businesses open. Similarly, he advised governors to ask for whatever they needed to counter the rising coronavirus.
Admitting his failure, Biden said the steps taken by his administration in increasing the testing capacity of the country were not enough, stating he could have intensified his efforts, had he known about the situation back then.
Joe Biden needs to thank Republican governors. pic.twitter.com/2VlHmCWBus
— Ross Schumann (@RossSchumann) December 22, 2021
In October, the White House refused a proposal that could have increased the COVID testing facilities of the United States. Republican governors have already voiced their concerns against federal measures in tackling the pandemic.
Some of them, including Greg Abbott of Texas and Ron DeSantis of Florida, banned the Biden imposed vaccine mandate, claiming the Biden administration has no authority to implement them.
Even federal courts have given their verdicts against Biden’s vaccine mandate, declaring them null and void at many levels, which ultimately pushed the mandate to the Supreme Court.
