AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing President Joe Biden's administration in an effort to stop the administration's mandatory COVID-19 vaccination for federal contractor workers.
The lawsuit comes the day after Paxton and 20 other states' attorneys general sent the Biden administration a joint letter challenging the mandate.
“The Biden Administration has repeatedly expressed its disdain for Americans who choose not to get a vaccine, and it has committed repeated and abusive federal overreach to force upon Americans something they do not want,” Paxton said. “The federal government does not have the ability to strip individuals of their choice to get a vaccine or not. If the President thinks his patience is wearing thin, he is clearly underestimating the lack of patience from Texans whose rights he is infringing.”
President Biden first announced the vaccine requirements in early September. The rules mandated that employers with more than 100 workers require them to be vaccinated or be tested for the virus on a weekly basis. The order would affect millions of Americans, according to the Associated Press.
The president also required federal contractors get the vaccine, without the testing option given to non-federal contract businesses, which would impact millions more although the exact number isn't clear.
The lawsuit filed by Paxton on Oct. 29 claims the president's orders are "coercive tactics" that demand federal contractors have the "millions of Americans they employ get vaccinated or lose their jobs."
Read the full lawsuit here.
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