TEXAS, USA — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, along with 20 other states' attorneys general, sent a joint letter to the Biden Administration, challenging the mandatory COVID-19 vaccination for federal contractors.
“The Biden Administration will be liable for the damages caused by this unconstitutional and reckless vaccine mandate," Paxton said. “I will not allow the federal government to control the health and livelihoods of hard-working Americans by imposing ill-advised regulations on federal contractors.”
President Biden announced the federal vaccination mandate in early September. The sweeping orders require employers with more than 100 workers to mandate immunizations or offer weekly testing. The new rules could affect as many as 100 million Americans, although it's not clear how many of those people are currently unvaccinated.
The Associated Press reported that, per Biden's order, the millions who work as employees of the executive branch and contractors who do business with the federal government won't have the option to get tested instead of taking the vaccine.
You can read the full letter here.
The White House provided the following statement:
"This is a once-in-a-generation pandemic that has taken the lives of more than 700,000 Americans, and the president has committed to pulling every lever possible to save lives and stop the spread of the virus. Vaccine requirements work: they’re good for workers, good for the economy and good for the country. The president has authority to protect the federal workforce and promote efficiency in federal contracting in this way. The Department of Justice and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have already determined that COVID vaccines can be required by employers."
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