President Biden’s administration is furious that Congress is poised to remove the military’s universal vaccine mandate, a major concession to Republicans on Capitol Hill.
Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been pushing Congress to keep the vaccine requirement as a non-negotiable, but Republicans appear to have successfully negotiated an end to the policy in exchange for passing the military’s budget proposal, according to the Washington Post. Biden officials argue ending the mandate will cost lives, while Republicans say they are standing up for individual autonomy.
Biden officials have reportedly complained that ending the mandate will cause logistical problems for deploying troops overseas, as many countries have their own vaccine mandates. They also fear that outbreaks of COVID-19 in the ranks could disrupt military readiness. Read more…