President Joe Biden on Tuesday claimed Americans are “moving forward safely, back to more normal routines” two years after the start of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic and asserted the virus “no longer” needs to “control our lives,” yet he failed to announce the end of the federal mask requirement, forcing Americans to mask up on planes.
“Because of the progress we’ve made, because of your resilience and the tools we have, tonight I can say we are moving forward safely, back to more normal routines,” Biden claimed, pointing to the “progress” made during his administration and attributing normalcy to that, despite the fact that the science has not changed and restrictions continued throughout the year as the country experienced spikes of the virus.
“Just a few days ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—the CDC—issued new mask guidelines. Under these new guidelines, most Americans in most of the country can now be mask free. And based on the projections, more of the country will reach that point across the next couple of weeks,” Biden said, adding, “Thanks to the progress we have made this past year, COVID-19 need no longer control our lives.”
Yet, nowhere in the speech did Biden mention lifting the federal mask mandate, which forces Americans to mask up in transportation hubs and when hopping on a plane.
Joe Biden mandated masks on federal property and was busted not wearing a mask himself. pic.twitter.com/GzVRDUaOpj
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) January 21, 2021
In December 2021, Biden extended the mandate yet again, assuring that it would remain in place through the winter.
“And we are extending the requirement, both internationally and domestically, to wear masks for travel on aircraft, train, public transportation, through the winter months,” Biden said during the December speech at the National Institutes of Health (NIH ).
As Breitbart News detailed:
The expected expiration of the extended mandate is March 18, according to reports. The mandate was slated to end January 18, 2022, but even that was an extension, as the deadline prior to that was September 13. However, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) extended the rule in August.
It was nearly one year ago that Biden vowed to require masking “wherever possible” as part of his plan for the first 100 days in office.
It remains unclear if he plans to extend the mandate yet again as blue state leaders conveniently begin to lift restrictions in their states, months before the midterm elections. Timing, many have pointed out, is suspect, as the Democrat-led U.S. House of Representatives, as well as White House, only opted to remove their mask mandates prior to the State of the Union address.
Again, it serves as a reminder that Biden broke the promise of asking Americans to mask up for “just” 100 days.
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