The Attorney General of Texas is suing the Biden administration to overturn the transportation mask mandate. He’s got strong legal arguments, but the timing is suspect. He’s waited until it’s close to no longer mattering, while running for re-election and when he’s under federal indictment.
The federal airline transportation mask mandate was unnecessary, because U.S. airlines already required masks when the federal government told them they had to. It was also probably illegal the same reason the CDC eviction ban was ruled illegal by the Supreme Court. Both were stretches of the same statute in the same manner.
When the airline mask mandate is lifted it will be for political reasons, not scientific ones, and probably before the midterm elections.
There’s an argument it may have made sense during the Omicron surge, and an argument that it helps less (because Omicron spreads so efficiently) and matters less (because vaccines hold up well, and we have much better treatments). Either way we’re reaching a point where the country is deciding the pandemic phase of dealing with Covid-19 has passed.
- The federal transportation mask mandate currently runs through March 18
- If I had to guess it gets extended one more time, for another couple of months, but I am not certain of this. Regardless we’re reaching the end stage of the mandate. And several airlines are ready to see it lifted.
So it’s a rather strange time for the Texas Attorney General to be challenging the mask rule.
Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is currently running for re-election, has been under indictment for the past several years on charges of securities fraud. Several of his own deputies resigned a year ago accusing him of bribery and numerous other crimes. Among other things he reportedly had a large campaign donor hire a woman with whom he had an extramarital affair, and had his deputies work over a holiday weekend on an opinion that stopped a foreclosure sale of the developer’s properties.
As one reader offers, Paxton may have filed now knowing it’s likely the mandate will be withdrawn soon. Then, even if it doesn’t wind up litigated, he can claim credit.
Questions about mask mandates usually focus on whether masks are good or bad, not whether they’re legal. Congress could have passed one, but Congress no longer legislates. And not everything is within the purview of the Presidency. Still, the timing of this challenge to the mask mandate seems… cynical.
Texas can’t handle Florida is a bigger shithole. But they try harder.
Ken Paxton, my man!
Don’t mess with Texas!
All of the governors should sue the pants off the federal government for imposing such an antiscientific harmful rule for 2 years and counting!
Maybe this fund-raising-hungry Paxton clown could do us all a favor and instead push to scrap the TSA’s passenger identification-checking mandate. Going after the passenger ID nonsense would be a more worthy objective than to try to expedite the phasing out of something that is going to be phased out anyway in relatively short order.
I love that our “leaders” think they know it all. A good leaders follows experts in fields they know nothing about. Covid-19 was about health, life and death, not politics. . .which is why TX and FL have no good leaders.
Good for GUWonder, the ID was just done to stop the black market in tickets. We don’t need internal passports here. And for that matter, the “control of the entry of infectious diseases” doesn’t work when only one form of transportation (commercial airliners) requires testing for travel to the U.S.. That should be scrapped really fast–just like building a dam across a dead flat lake, it does nothing. But governments hate to relinquish power, and are very slow to change. Much as I detest so many things the Texas government is doing today, I wish his suit well.
I’ve lived in Texas my entire life (unfortunately) and Ken Paxton is a SCUM BAG!!! The guy should have been in jail years ago. There are people rotting in jail that haven’t done half the criminal activities that this sleeze bag has done. Anyone else in a normal job would have been fired long ago if you did half the stuff this criminal has done. I have no respect for the scum bag. For some reason, the idiots in Texas continue to vote this criminal into office.
GOOD! It’s about time. END THE MASK NONSENSE. END THE LOCKDOWN MADNESS. STOP THE COVID CULTISTS FROM THEIR INSANE JAB REQUIREMENTS. Start living like free humans who are left to decide what’s right for them!
@JS Totally agree. Ken Paxton and Dan Patrick should all be locked in prison now. They took tons of money from energy companies by sitting in their advisor board. And these are the total shameless people and they have no clue how to run their own business. Let’s vote them out. Election is coming this year.
The Canadian truckers have been the most significant force in rolling back covid mandates. No country wants to be caught in the position of having your head of government surrounded by working class people and either being forced to remove them by force or let them dictate the agenda.
And for those that argue that anyone has followed the science re: covid management by requiring masks, strangely a number of Northeast states are rolling back their business and adult masking requirements even while requiring them of children. Anyone that watched the Super Bowl and an entire stadium full of people that refused to mask is in denial that anyone wants to wear them.
The fact that the San Francisco school board was decimated by parent recalls of leaders that horribly mismanaged covid even by the mayor’s own assessment shows that children have paid the price for covid policies and parents are reacting.
The CDC is trying hard not to bow to political pressure but they have ruined their credibility and are no longer in step w/ most of the world any more, let alone leading.
Masks including cloth masks as worn by the general public never made sense, Fauci knew that before a general mask mandate was ever imposed, and a single day longer of requiring them shows how inept the vast majority of global leaders have been in managing covid.
Lets face it, Republicans are IDIOTS !!!
Leftists weaponize the legal system with Trumped up charges that have no basis in reality. We have 50 million illegals who are given tax payer funded benefits instead of being deported and we have people who burned down businesses in riots who walk free. However, nonsensical rules are selectively applied to those not in favor yet their own can do pretty much anything and it will be ignored. Paxton is a solid Texas AG. He should win re-election.
Paxton should be weaponizing the legal system against leftists like they do to conservatives. It makes no sense why the heads of social media companies aren’t subpoenaed and indicted (sealed) in states like Texas. It makes no sense why the SPLC, Soros, and etc aren’t investigated like they do to the NRA and Trump organization. Playing fair is why conservatives have lost for 90 years. You can’t win playing fair in a system controlled by the left. It makes no sense why airline executives aren’t indicted and arrested for denying conservatives service.
I’m all for getting rid of masks, of course. But you gotta love the politicians and lawyers … they never give up putting themselves in the limelight for no reason whatsoever. They’re always true to their nature … keep peoples’ attention on them and whatever they support, whether it has any importance or not. As long as people are looking at them, they’re doing their jobs. I know, the politicians gotta get reelected and the lawyers have mortgages to pay. Filing lawsuits to accomplish something that is almost accomplished makes the TX AG look good to the morons, and the lawyers have something meaningless to do. Meaningless does not mean that they won’t get paid, of course.
Tim j
You must be a liberal idiot…. tell me how masks do anything (they never really did) but since you’re so smart, I’d love to hear your explanation
James – I hope you don’t get to see your mother die on an iPad and that is your last memory. COVID is real, vaccines do work and only an IDIOT would ignore science. . .BTW the world is round and wasn’t created in 7 days.
Paxton is a POS but he really wants to win reelection and this is a smart move. I’ll still support George P since we went to school but Paxton has a huge advantage.
@Hal – completely agree that Paxton is a POS. He’s scum-bag enough to bring this lawsuit now for political gain. George P on the other hand is about as big of a disgrace as there is. This guy betrayed his family name, jockeyed for Trump’s endorsement and tried to ride his coattails – again, at the expense of his family name, and then Trump turns around and does not endorse him and instead endorses Paxton. Yet, George P still tries to ride Trump’s coattails – even after Trump publicly disgraced him. I’m sure Jeb, his father, is soooooo very proud of his son. What a disgrace to the Bush family name. As a Texan, I keep thinking to myself – is this the best we can come up with? They’re all betraying, criminal SCUM BAGS!!! None of them could hold down a normal job like the rest of us.
How you far leftists cant see what’s before you is astonishing. Your party has been high jacked by the very thing we have always fought against. At one time I was proud to be a Dem but I do not recognize the party anymore. I’m not a big Trumper but I’ll take him over the sham group in charge now. Biden and the children propping him up need to be fried over the energy and border issues alone. He took an oath to protect America from danger both foreign and domestic.
@Jackson Waterson
Like Paxton and Patrick, Jackass you’re nothing but a “Chump Fool” several times over.
I see that the lying leftists posting here not only are staying ignorant to reality but have actually grown dumber while swallowing the socialist DemocRatic swill.
@joanie adams – so ironic because the exact same argument could be used again the far right:
“Your party has been high jacked by the very thing we have always fought against.” – Yes, the republican party was high jacked by Trump and Authoritarianism.
“….sham group in charge now.” – Has there ever been a bigger sham than Trump?
“Biden and the children propping him up need to be fired over the energy and border issues alone.” – Trump and his literal children and Trump’s minions all propped him up. Oh, don’t forget about his border crisis – caged children for weeks on end. That’s Christian and humane, right?
“He took an oath to protect America from danger both foreign and domestic” – Do you honestly think Trump would be standing up to Russia right now? NO.
It’s all ironic when you really break it down, isn’t it?
JS_ You truly are an idiot. Keep watching CNN, for it is obvious that you are getting and have been getting your “information” from them for a long time. Do yourself and everyone else a favor and go look in any mirror, there you will see a true imbecile.
TJ – stick it to the anti-vaxxers and anti-mask idiots spouting their views here. What a bunch of “free-to-do-anything” goons. If they felt strongly about their freedom to do anything, I would challenge them to put the end of a gun to their mouth and pull the trigger to show their man/womanhood. But then they are gutless. Typical Cowboys of Texas!
Again… name calling. Why? Why? Why?
Can’t you have a discussion and share your OPINIONS with name calling?
Patrick – if you reread the previous postings here you will see that the name calling and hateful info is being posted by lying liberals.
@David Miller – you lying POS. You are the one who just called me an idiot and an imbecile. You’re just like Trump – lie, lie, lie, lie, and still lie. So it’s alright for YOU to call people names, huh??
Paxton has been indicted on securities fraud charges since his first months in office six years ago. He more recently came under FBI investigation over allegations by some of his former deputies that he abused his office to aid a wealthy donor. He also had an extramarital affair with a woman whom he later recommended for a job with that wealthy donor.
JS – you really are a moron. You spew lie after lie and expect to get away with them – Sorry, I am calling you out on your stupidity and you lies. The adjectives I used to describe your mental acuity are factual and correct. You are an idiot and a imbecile – as your ignorant postings prove. If you ever pull your head out of your ass and view reality you will then know that I am correct in my depiction of you and your stupidity. You are what is wrong in America.
For all of those that argue about Paxton’s personal life or conduct, please provide the name of one person that has had anything to do with managing covid at the national level that has a spotless reputation. I don’t care about what any of them have done outside of the mask issues because I don’t live in Texas.
As for those of you that argue about the validity of masking as done by the general public including wearing cloth masks and being allowed to remove them to “take a bite of food or a sip of your beverage,” please show us a study – just one will do – that has validated the effectiveness of masking on aircraft under those conditions. JUST ONE STUDY WILL DO.
It is time for all of those to say “follow the science” as if that is an excuse to continue mask wearing to produce scientific studies to prove the validity of masking under conditions which exist on commercial aircraft and using the the guidelines which passengers are permitted.
The simple fact is that masks as worn by the public do absolutely nothing, Fauci knew they were worthless for that purpose and wrote that in now public emails, and yet he imposed them anyway.
Despite the fear mongering that some live in, it is absolutely valid to ask that unproven and worthless covid measures be ditched – for the traveling public, for businesses, and for schoolchildren.
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again.
“The federal transportation mask mandate currently runs through March 18”
Not necessarily. The CDC order has no expiration date. The TSA directives do, but TSA has said these directives will be renewed until the CDC order is no longer in effect.
David Miller – you are truly a legend in your own mind. Have a nice day!
@DaivdMiller – I have read them and the name calling and hatred is spewed from BOTH sides. So sad.
At this point we can protect ourselves very well with vaccines, and we can choose to wear N95 masks that give the user excellent protection. We don’t need mandated “any flimsy thing that covers your mouth and nose no matter how useless” rules anymore. It’s time to let go and let people be responsible for their own well being.
Hey Gary, I love your columns but you know nothing about law and should stay out of politics. Most of your readers are not Right Wing Nut Jobs and don’t want to read posts like this. Sad!
AP News Update: Texas Attorney General Sues To Overturn Hospital Operating Room Mask Mandate.
Texas Atty. General Ken Paxton cites constitutional right of patients in operating rooms to splash blood and bodily fluid on surgeons, nurses, and operating room staff as a basic “freedom to infect.”
Good. Texas and Florida are both the fastest growing states for a reason. They are the rational and sane states.
@GREGGY: Then leave you lefty snowflake.