Congressmen Ben Cline (R-VA-06) and Bob Good (R-VA-05) are protesting Democrat-led COVID-19 vaccine mandates by co-sponsoring multiple bills. House Republicans lack the ability to pass bills without Democratic buy-in, but that hasn’t stopped them from introducing multiple bills targeting mandates in November. Cline touted his support for the bills in a Tuesday newsletter.
“Businesses across the country are desperate for workers, and our Nation is facing a critical supply chain shortage. As grocery store shelves sit empty, and communities struggle to recover, President Biden should be doing everything possible to encourage Americans to show up to work. Instead, it is the Administration’s plan to implement a vaccine mandate that would force millions of Americans out of work,” he wrote.
- Congressmen Cline, Good, H. Morgan Griffith (R-Virginia-09) and Robert Wittman (R-Virginia-01) cosigned Congressman Fred Keller’s (R-Pennsylvania-12) House Joint Resolution 65, which protests the Department of Labor COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing; Emergency Temporary Standard. The standard requires employers with more than 100 employees to mandate vaccination. The mandate has been suspended pending the ongoing court process.
- Cline and Good cosponsored Congressman Jim Banks’ (R-Indiana-03) House Resolution (HR) 6017, companion to a bill from Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), which would ban government agencies including schools for mandating COVID-19 vaccines for minors, and requires parental consent before the vaccine is administered to minors.
- Cline and Good cosponsored Congressman Brian Babin’s (R-Texas-36) HR 5892 which would protect federal benefits for service members and veterans who refuse the COVID-19 vaccine.
- Cline and Wittman cosponsored Congressman James Comer’s (R-Kentucky-01) HR 6016, which would ban executive agencies from mandating COVID-19 vaccines for contractors.
- Cline cosponsored Congressman John Moolenaar’s (R-Michigan-04) HR 5811, which would prohibit the use of funds from the 2022 Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act to implement or enforce a COVID-19 mandate.
- Cline cosponsored Congressman Tim Burchett’s (R-Tennessee-02) HR 5860, which would exempt essential workers from the COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
- Good cosponsored Congressman Ralph Norman’s (R-South Carolina-05) HR 5967, which would require higher education institutions to provide religious exemptions to COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
In a November 20 newsletter Good said, “My office is flooded with calls from Virginians who stand to lose their jobs because of the vaccine mandate. First responders, nurses, members of our military and many others who went to work in person every day throughout the pandemic — often referred to as frontline heroes — are now having their livelihood threatened if they refuse the COVID shot. This week I renewed my call on Governor-Elect Youngkin to announce now that he will do everything within his power on DAY ONE in office to make Virginia a vaccine mandate-free state. No Virginian should be compelled to give up their medical freedom due to the unconstitutional actions of a tyrannical federal government.”
In his newsletter, Cline said, “The Federal government should not be mandating vaccines on American citizens and threatening the jobs of folks who don’t comply is simply wrong. That is why I have taken several actions to protect the rights of citizens across this country.”
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Eric Burk is a reporter at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
