No More Mandates

Dear Friend,

It’s been nearly 2 years since the first case of COVID-19 was discovered and despite all the flip-flopping from federal officials, we all now have a pretty good idea of what works, what doesn’t work, and how we can best protect ourselves and our families.

Chief among the things that work are the COVID-19 vaccines, which have proven highly effective, particularly at preventing folks from getting severe cases and needing to be hospitalized. Quite frankly, President Trump and his Administration don’t get nearly the credit they deserve for getting the vaccines developed and approved in record time.

These vaccines aren’t perfect though. Even though they’re highly effective, the immunity they offer isn’t 100 percent—nothing is. And, they may not be right for everyone, which is why you should talk to your doctor about the vaccines and what’s best for you if you have health concerns. I’m not going to sit here and tell you what you should and shouldn’t do because getting a COVID-19 vaccine is a personal choice and quite frankly you shouldn’t be taking medical advice from a farmer.

Let me repeat that: getting a COVID-19 vaccine is a personal choice. The federal government has no business mandating them. The President’s most recent attempt to mandate every American working at a company with more than 100 employees get vaccinated is patently absurd. Never before has a President tried to use OSHA to mandate a vaccine. It’s ridiculous and it’s just another example of this “bureaucrats know better than you” kind of thinking we see churning out of Washington, DC every day. It sort of makes you wonder, where will they dare to go next?

That’s why I drew a line in the sand this week. I led Republicans in the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in introducing an amendment to prevent the use of our transportation dollars from imposing or enforcing COVID-19 vaccine mandates as a condition to enter public buildings. You can watch my full remarks below.

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Unfortunately, the Majority wouldn’t support it because they said there was no evidence it would happen. Don’t forget that we were also told for months by the President himself that he wasn’t going to issue any sweeping COVID-19 vaccine mandates and obviously that wasn’t true. We can’t wait for this Administration to trample on our most basic rights before we take action, we have to anticipate their next move and stop this madness before it starts.

That’s what I remain committed to doing.

Sincerely,

Sam Graves