Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 01:39 pm
RachelĀ Maddow showed Republicans that President Biden does have the legal authority to enact his COVID policy because presidents have done this for hundreds of years.
Video:
Rachel #maddow explains to the hysterical right that President Biden does have the authority to carry out his COVID plan, and presidents have had such authority for hundreds of years. pic.twitter.com/Fl2i7sYnTI
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— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) September 10, 2021
Maddow said:
Today President Biden announced a muscular new approach by the federal government to contend with the delta variant of theĀ coronavirus, to try to finallyĀ wrench this pandemic to theĀ ground and defeat it.Ā The immediate chorus fromĀ Republican governors and membersĀ of Congress and right-wing commentators all over theĀ country was, he can’t do that.Ā He can’t tell private entities what to do.
Really?
Why does your car have a seatĀ belt?Ā Maybe the company that made yourĀ car, that private entity, didn’tĀ want to put in seat belts.Ā But nevertheless, your car has aĀ seat belt.Ā Why is that?Ā Why is the ground beef youĀ bought for dinner tonightĀ government inspected?Ā Meat producers do, in theĀ private sector, have everyĀ incentive to only produce meatĀ that people like and doesn’tĀ make anybody sick, right?Ā We don’t need the governmentĀ sticking its nose in and tellingĀ you that’s actually cow you’reĀ eating and not roadkill. Why is there government inspection of that privately produced product?Ā
….
And the reaction on the rightĀ today and tonight and in much ofĀ the beltway press is, oh,Ā presidents can’t do stuff likeĀ this — that is a born yesterdayĀ canard.Ā President Johnson, Nixon,Ā Roosevelt, who was it who signedĀ the Lincoln railway couplingĀ ban?Ā President Harrison — would likeĀ to have a word with anybodyĀ screaming today that President Biden doesn’t lead aĀ federal government with theseĀ types of authorities. These are absolutely theĀ authorities of the federalĀ government.Ā
Biden Has Centuries Of Precedent On His Side
If Republican governors sue Biden on this issue, they will lose and lose badly. The President Of The United States has the legal authority to do exactly what Joe Biden did.
Biden deserves credit for understanding that the real source of the COVID surge is Republican politicians. The Republican elected officials who refuse to protect their own citizens are fueling this surge of COVID among the unvaccinated, and Joe Biden is coming after them with the full force of the federal government.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelorās Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards andĀ Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
